Lotus Moon
by Invader-Hime
Summary: UPDATED Chapter 17....The story continues. Who is left alive? Read to find out. My Tso Lan centric fic set in the ancient past where family can be your worst enemy and bonds of kinship and love are but to the ultimate test.
1. Default Chapter

disclaimer-I do not own JCA, a house, a pony or various other things. I do own a totally bad ass statue of Jango and Boba Fett in the rain. ((~.*)  
  
  
Hey! Me Chibi Hime here! Remember me?   
I've had writer's block! Blah!  
I've also busy with college stuff!  
Hence the lack of updates on Legend In Love, my other JCA fic.  
But te other day, this came into my mind!  
And I finally have a few minutes to type it up!   
Enjoy!  
  
A/N: I noticed that the demons were never given an origin or a birth order, so I decided it was time that someone wrote one up! Here's the story before they were rulers, when they were young and the world was very different, a time when lotus blossoms bloomed............  
  
Chapter 1-My World  
  
I am not human and I am not a god. I am a demon. You humans cringe at that word, I wonder   
  
why. I do not understand. But I am young in the eyes of the world and the eyes of my family. We   
  
live in China, my family and I. My father, his wives and my brothers and sisters. I am sorry, you   
  
do not know who I am. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Tso Lan.  
  
I am the second son of Marl Kung, the great demon lord of the region. As I have previously   
  
mentioned, father has more than one wife. In fact, he has four. I was born of his second wife,   
  
Rei Fin, a succubus. I have a twin sister named Bai Tsa, we are very close. Mother says it is   
  
because we spent so much time together before we were born.   
  
His first wife, Xia Zu the oni, bore him only one son, his first born, Tchang Tzu. His third wife,   
  
Lu Song is the mother of Xiao Fung amd Po Kong, no one knows what race of monster she is, I   
  
doubt father knows, either. His fourth wife, Syra Seo the dragon is the mother of Dai Gui and   
  
father's youngest child, Shendu. We all favor our mothers more than our father. However, the   
  
one trait we all share is our father's eyes. His eyes are burning red and so are ours.  
  
Once, father went to an oracle. She told him that after the birth of his eighth child, he would be   
  
overthrown. I doubt the integrity of this prophecy, but father's wives are superstitious. All   
  
except mother, she believes that we all make our own decisions and through karma, the good or   
  
bad chi that we create through our actions, determines our fate. Mother is smarter than the   
  
others, I believe. The others urge him to not marry again and to remain with them for the rest   
  
of his days. They drink the contraceptive tea every day, it has a foul, annoying smell that clings   
  
to my nostrils. Mother does not partake, I am happy.  
  
We all live together in father's grand palace. While not truly a palace, more of a collection of   
  
bungalows, gardens and temples, it is enormous and has enough room for seven demon children,   
  
four wives, a demon lord and all the necessary servants. All the demon children live with their   
  
respective mothers, father lives in the main bungalow. He rarely visits us in our homes, it is not   
  
his place. He calls our mothers to his side at night, one, two or more at a time. We children mind   
  
our own business, wrestling with one another or reading. The servants watch us, false smiles   
  
upon their faces. I sit alone and read a book that i brought from the library. Bai looks at me with   
  
large red orbs, she understands what is really going on. I do as well, but we do not speak of it.   
  
Our eyes do the talking.  
  
I spend much of my time alone in the library. The silence is euphoric. The strong light of the   
  
sun is harsh to my eyes. I prefer the dark, comforting shadows. I believe it has something to do   
  
with the powers I will gain when I am older. Demons gain their powerws when they become   
  
adolescents. I am several decades from this, as are my siblings. I light incense, its perfumed   
  
smoke drifts up to the ceiling. I read for hours, absorbing everything. I often tell Bai the things I   
  
have read about. She listens, ever loyal and attentive. She is my only companion, save for   
  
mother. I do not desire the company of my siblings, they are loud, violent and stupid. Father will   
  
occasionally visit me in the library. He will ask what I am reading, what have I learned and why do i   
  
like it. He runs his claws over the pages and reads them in whispers under his breath. Fathe ris   
  
a large demon, armored, horned, muscular. He is adorned with jewelery and fine robes. Father is   
  
ancient and wise. I suppose I admire him more than I love him. a strange family we have, but i   
  
would like it no other way.  
  
One day, father calls all his wives to his bungalow. This is wrong, this does not happen, not   
  
during the day unless it is for tea, or there are visitors. There are no visitors and we have   
  
already drank our tea for today..   
  
Something is happening, I feel it. I hear mournful howls of grief from all the wives issuing from   
  
within. I do not hear mother. I climb a wall and attempt to look in a window, but a servant stops   
  
me. A human servant stops me. Later, the thought will haunt me, now it frustrates me.  
  
That night in our bungalow, Bai and I await Mother's return. The servants bring dinner before   
  
she returns. Bai is worried, but I know mother is strong and brave, nothing has happened to her.   
  
She arrives moments after Bai starts to cry. She looks ired and her eyes are red from tears.   
  
She asks that we sit down and eat dinner together.  
  
Mother, Bai and I sit around our table, seated on the floor, eating dumplings with chop sticks.   
  
Mother is smiling and silent. Bai looks at me, I look back. Mother knows something we do not. Bai   
  
is worrued. I am too, but mother will tell us when she is ready. Her orange eyes look at us, but   
  
she is not looking at us. She is looking at something we cannot see, something that exists only in   
  
the world of adults. She looks up at us and says,  
  
"Your father has decided to marry again,"  
  
End chapter 1  
Well? What do you think? 


	2. Rumikohime

Chapter 2-Rumiko-hime  
  
disclaimer: i don't own jca, but i do own a stuffed koala named Vincent.  
  
"What?" Bai asks, her voice cracked.  
  
"Why does he need to?" I ask, monotone, as I always am regarding father's sex life.  
  
"He has fallen in love with a human. A human from Japan, Rumiko-hime,"  
  
"A princess?" Bai asks.  
  
"Yes," Mother is calm, she has had much time to meditate on this.  
  
"Why? Aren't all of you enough?" Bai is hysterical, she cares only for father's safety. She is a   
  
good daughter. If I ever have a daughter, I want her to be like Bai.  
  
"Your father has the right to do as he pleases. He is lord of the region,"  
  
Bai nods.  
  
"He has a right to marry whoever he desires," Mother says.  
  
Bai nods, but stops. Her eyes well tears and she bangs the table with a fist. "Its not fair! He has   
  
four wives! That should be enough for anyone!" she screams.  
  
"Bai," Mother warns.  
  
Bai sniffs, sits back down and apologizes. But she isn't sorry. I know her too well.  
  
"Your father will be fine. don't worry my wonderful children," Mother says.  
  
Bai and I are Mother's only family, her only friends. The other wives are her companions, but   
  
not her friends. I don't care about father. I care about mother. The thought of him bedding   
  
another woman outside of his current wives makes me shiver. For an odd reason, I feel it is a   
  
slight to my mother. I do not know why I feel this way. It is not uncommon to marry after   
  
marrying other wives. I have been feeling strange lately. Mother says I am growing up early.   
  
"Rumiko-hime arrives in four days. I expect both of you to treat her with the utmost respect.  
  
"Yes, Mother," we answer.  
  
................................  
  
  
It is the fourth day. Rumiko-hime arrives today. All the wives except mother are prepared to   
  
hate her. They performed ceremonies to ward off evil spirits. Po Kong and Bai were forced to   
  
act as replacement shrine maidens, the usual ones had been busy preparing for the wedding. I am   
  
anxious to see what type of woman she is. Who could father have fallen in love with? I want to   
  
see.  
  
She arrived that aternoon, riding on a horse. She is pale, with long dark hair that runs down her   
  
back. She is beautiful for a human. She wears a brilliant kimono with a matching fan and tall,   
  
wooden shoes. She is quiet, afraid of the demons before her. With good reason.  
  
Mother wecomes her warmly, hugging and kissing her. She responds to mother and they chat.   
  
Mother likes her. Perhaps it is because humans and succubi are similar.   
  
The wedding is tomorrow, we should be happy. The other wives and their children are cold and   
  
hostile towards her. I am relieved that she is not rude. She is respectful and friendly towards   
  
mother. They drink tea and talk for hours. Bai joins them and so do I. Rumiko-hime tells us   
  
about her palace, her family, her temple, her dog, her friends, her horse, her clothes, her food.   
  
Everything is so different, so interesting. I love to learn, so I listen. I absorb everything.  
  
I like Rumiko-hime. Dai Gui doesn't. He struck me for speaking highly of her. I did not strike back.   
  
I am no coward, I just know that he is too stupid to argue, so he strikes.  
  
Tomorrow, our lives will change. I wonder if father and Rumiko-hime wil................  
  
I am glad I am not an adult. The world is strange to adults. To me, it is life. I sleep now. The   
  
wide, full moon shines through my window. I feel a strange euphoria as its light flows over my   
  
chest as I lay on my mattress. What does this mean. I shut my eyes and drift into dreams.  
  
End chapter 2 


	3. Lotus

Chapter 3 Already?  
Don't worry, another chapter of LiL is in the works, I am just unsure what to do where to go with it. Its started, just unfinished.  
Thanks for reading, I love feedback!(hint)  
  
Hey, guess what? I don't own JCA! But I do own a pair of Invader Zim flip flops.  
  
Chapter 3-Lotus  
  
  
It is father's wedding day. I am not happy for him, I am happy for Rumiko-hime. She is happy   
  
with it, she loves him, I witnessed her confessions to mother and I heard the pristine passion in   
  
her voice. Rumiko-hime is dressed in the traditional japanese wedding garb. I recognize this from   
  
a book that I found in the library. I read all about that country, its people, its customs. The   
  
jasmine incensed pulsed with an orange light as it slowly burned itself. I sat, my luminiscent eyes   
  
are the only light in the room.  
  
Suddenly, the door creaks open. I avert my eyes from my precious text, I hear a slithering   
  
sound, slinking across the fine marble floor. Bai.  
  
"Yes, Bai?" I ask, even though I know what she is here for.  
  
"Tso, It's time to get ready. You are coming aren't you? Mother has insisted that we both   
  
attend. Our honorable father has requested our presence. Rumiko-hime s looking forward to   
  
seeing us and......"  
  
"I'm coming, Bai," i interrupt.  
  
She has taken to being formal, even with me. Rumiko-hime has tried to teach her how to be   
  
civil. Bai takes it in like a sponge, absorbing every detail of etiquette. I know that it will not last.   
  
It is merely a temporary fad for her. I hope it passes quickly, this polite Bai is not my Bai. I want   
  
my sister back, the quiet listener as well as the raging demoness.   
  
"Tso.....is everything alright?"  
  
I pause. I want to scream "No! Everything is not alright! everything is changing! Even you1 How   
  
long is it before I change!". But I remain silent. I cast a glance over to my lotus blossom shaped   
  
incense burner. the incense has burned out. I turn back to Bai, she is looking at me anxiously,   
  
wringing her claws. That's my Bai.  
  
"I am merely nervous , my inquisitive sister," I answer smiling.  
  
"I'm glad. I was worried about you," she gives me her unique smile, which is quite difficult to   
  
describe, considering the shape of her mouth. Of course, I should be the one to talk.......  
  
We leave together for our bungalow, the ashen cone of incense crubles with the closing of the   
  
door.  
  
...........................  
  
  
We are all assembled in the grand garden. Countless flowers bloom, cherry blossoms float   
  
down upon us all. We are all dressed in the finest silken robes we own. Mother wears a delicate   
  
peach colored one with embroidery of a tiger running down its side. In her clawed hands, she   
  
holds a palace fan with a fish painted on it. It fits her blue complexion. Mother is the most   
  
beautiful of father's wives, save for Rumiko-hime.   
  
My six siblings are seated beside their respective mothers. Shendu, wretched brat that he is,   
  
has been pinching Xiao for five minutes. Neither of their mothers says a word. They are typical   
  
demonesses, they believe that their children should fend for themselves. Mother believes every   
  
child grows up at their own pace and that she has her own methods for guiding Bai and I. I am   
  
glad, I would no want to deal with that spiny sack of bile. He is father's youngest son and is fairly   
  
spoiled. Half of me wishes that the eighth child is born, if only to remove Shendu from his   
  
favorite position. He is the only child who is allowed to sit on father's lap except for Tchang Zu.   
  
We all bow our heads as Father and Rumiko-hime approach the altar. All my siblings and their   
  
mothers are silent, save for Shendu, whose assault has yet to cease. I know that they are all   
  
only here because father forced them to attend. They would rather be tormenting their human   
  
nursemaids or torturing small animals.   
  
The ceremony is quick, over before it really began. I am puzzled, marriage lasts forever, but it   
  
only takes less than a half hour to complete the ceremony. Afterwards, we all feast and dance.   
  
Father and Rumiko-hime are alive with pleasure and joy. Father's wives shoot accusing glares   
  
every few dances. Mother does not, she cries with joy for her husband and her friend's mutual   
  
happiness. I am proud of my mother.  
  
I step outside, unable to stand the negative chi that is radiating from a majoriy of the party.   
  
Mother glances at me and at Bai. She fans herself with her fan.  
  
  
.................  
  
  
I sit on a stone bench near a pond. I take a package of rice ot of one of the pockets in my   
  
robe. I undo its tiny ribbon with my lower arm ard toss it into the water with my upper arm. The   
  
koi fish in the pond devour it in a few seconds, there is no trace that it was ever there. I hear a   
  
throat being cleared behind me, Mother.  
  
"Tso?" she asks.  
  
"Yes, Mother? I put all my respect and admiiration for her into those two words.  
  
"I was wondering how you were taking all this. I know that you are far more inelligent and   
  
perceptive than the others. I wanted to be sure that you were comfortable with this,"  
  
"Yes, I am,"   
  
A hollow answer. I toss more rice to the fish.  
  
"You can't fool me, Tso. i'm your mother," she smiles and laughs. She reaches into her robe and   
  
withdraws a lotus blossom.  
  
"Tso, I want you to have this,"  
  
I know not where she got it or what I am supposed to do with it. I accept it with a puzzled   
  
expression upon my face.  
  
"Do not worry, Tso. In time, you will know what to do with it. You see, this is not a normal lotus   
  
blossom. It came from a plant in my village when I was a girl. It was a gift from my grandfather   
  
upon my adolescence,"  
  
I am confused.  
  
"Shouldn't this go to Bai?" I ask.  
  
"It does not suit her, I have something else planned for her adolescence. I know you will not be an   
  
adolescent for a decade or so, but I believe you are ready for this now,"  
  
"But.........."  
  
"Shhhh......Let it go, love," she whispers inmy ear, a very sweet sound. She turns gracefully and   
  
returns to the party. I stay on my bench for a few more minutes. I gaze upon the soft blossom   
  
in my hand. It is more than forty years old, yet it appears to be freshly picked. I am puzzled, but   
  
I trust Mother.  
  
  
Later that night, I am unable to sleep. A recurring nightmare has visited me again. I am pulled   
  
through a door to an indescribable hell, Bai is there, sobbing. I can't hear her, but slowly, I listen   
  
closely and she is murmuring:  
  
"Mother...Mother,"  
  
My eyes fill with tears and I scream, a cry of such despair, rage and hate that I awaken   
  
shivering and unsure of what has transpired.   
  
I am walking in the garden, towards Father's bungalow, I know not why, it is just aimless   
  
wandering. I notice a light in father's room. Perhaps he is still awake. He is known for his dream   
  
analyzations and their accuracy. Perhaps he can help me. As I approach his door, I bcome aware   
  
of deep breathing sounds coming from within. Perplexed, I silently slide the door open half an   
  
inch. I hear both father and Rumiko-hime's voices, distorted by the covering of sheets. I cannot   
  
make out what they say, but I can guess, I always was a smart one. All I can see is Rumiko-hime's   
  
hand, her sleeve and the corner of her pillow. It's enough. her hand clenches and unclenches and   
  
I hear various growls and gasps. I am momentarily unable to tear my eyes away, but shortly I am   
  
repulsed. I slip the door back, silenly and I quickly run back to my bench.   
  
I lean on it, catching my breathe, I ran alll the way from father's bungalow to the pond across   
  
from my own. I have the horrible feeling that I have done something wrong. I am disgusted and   
  
yet I am intrigued. I wipe the sweat from my brow with my upper hand and I feel myself wipe   
  
away tears as well.   
  
I have learned what it is that grownups see that I cannot. Not yet. Someday I will, but I do no   
  
want to. Grownups see with their drives, I see with my mind. To imagine such and honorable   
  
figure like father performing such an action seems contradictory and Rumiko-hime, such a   
  
refined and friendly lady..........Damn it! The thought seems as if it should be a crime just to think   
  
it. I can't imagine Mother doing anything like that....ever. But, Bai and i had to have come from   
  
somewhere. I am confused, I feel as though I have been deceived by father for years. Is that all   
  
his love is? Mother's love is not that love, neithe ris Bai's! Their love is fulfilling to me!   
  
After I have calmed down, I return to my bungalow and my bed. I stare at the moon, blessed orb,   
  
until I fall asleep.  
  
End Chapter 3  
Whew! Chapter 3 is done. Yay! I feel kinda bad for Tso, walking in on his dad like that, but it just kept nagging at my mind and I put it it the story. Gracias para leido (pardon my spanish, i'm rusty) 


	4. Secret

It is hard to imagine that Rumiko-hime hasn't been living here for long. It has been roughly   
  
seven months since the wedding. I can't imagine life without her. She and mother are great   
  
friends, I am happy for Mother, she deserves a friend. Rumiko-hime comes to our bungalow every   
  
day. We all sit together and talk about many things. We sit around a small table and drink honey   
  
ginseng tea, Tea is unique and perplexing. Tea is exciting, invigorating, yet very soothing.   
  
Mother and Bai are like tea. I wonder if Rumiko-hime is like tea?  
  
Mother, Bai and I are all seated, waiting for Rumiko-hime. The steam rises slowly from the tea   
  
pot. A plate of almond cookies sit, waiting to be devoured. A bowl of water in the center of the   
  
table has a lotus blossom (not mine) floating in it. We wait and wait, Rumiko-hime has never been   
  
late before. She had been acting strangely, Bai often finds her in the bathroom, vomitting. Bai   
  
only told me this, she is worried about her. I look over at Bai now, a look of worry crosses her   
  
features. I look at Mother. mother is looking someplace else, at something Bai and I cannot see.   
  
She moves her lips slightly and whispers something. I cannot hear it.  
  
  
"She?" asks Bai.  
  
Mother suddenly collapses. I rush to her side and sit her up. She blinks, a look of confusion on   
  
her face.   
  
"Mother? What did you see?" I ask.  
  
"I.......I'm not sure. There was a door to nowhere, You and Bai were there and the Eighth. Thast   
  
is all I remember,"  
  
"The Eighth? The eighth child?"  
  
"I think so," mother looks tired, but she sits herself up and thanks me.  
  
We sit waiting a few minutes more, then Rumiko-hime slides open the door. She looks very   
  
dissheveled, her hair is loose, her face is pale and she smells faintly of bile. She has tried to   
  
cover the scent with strong cinnamon perfume, It would fool most, but nothing escapes my nose.   
  
I also notice that her stomach is bulging. I have been noticing it for a few days now, but it seems   
  
more evident today. Her robe is not fixed as it usually is. She has been hiding something.   
  
Something I know that she cannot hide mush longer.  
  
"I'm sorry I'm late, Rei,"She sighs,"I haven't been feeling well,"  
  
"Do not worry, Rumiko. If you do not feel well, you can lay down here if you wish. We have an   
  
extra room. We can drink tea in there if you like," Mother offers.  
  
Mother is kind and good. I am proud of her. Rumiko-hime looks as if she is in a pit of despair,   
  
her eyes tear up and she answers:  
  
"You are so kind, Rei, but I am afraid that would not help. You see, I'm......I'm not...sick that way,"  
  
Bai cocks her head, confused. Mother cocks her head as well, but it is a question, a nonverbal   
  
prompt.  
  
"Oh Rei!" Rumiko-hime collapses into Mother's arms and sobs. The woman is an emotional wreck.   
  
"Shhh.What is it that worries you so, Rumiko?" Mother's voice is comforting.  
  
"I'm.." Rumiko-hime starts, but she cannot finish.  
  
Bai is getting annoyed, I can tell by the way her tail twitches. She gives an impatient scowl and   
  
reaches for an almond cookie. This solicites a fierce glare from Mother. Bai withdraws her hand.  
  
Mother sits with her arms around Rumiko-hime, rocking her like she used to rock Bai and myself   
  
when we were small.  
  
Finally, Rumiko-hime is ready to speak again.  
  
"I'm pregnant,"  
  
The room becomes totally silent. Bai blinks stupidly, I'm not surprised but it is still rather   
  
shocking, the reality of it. Mother is quick to break the silence.  
  
"How wonderful, Rumiko! You must be so happy! Have you told Marl? I'm sure he will be ecstatic, he   
  
gets into such a fuss over these things,"  
  
"Oh, no, Rei! Don't tell Marl or anyone else! I don't want them to know,"  
  
"Why on earth not?" Mother asks.  
  
"I don't want the others to hurt my baby,"  
  
It all makes sense, if father's other wives found out, they may try to hurt Rumiko-hime's child   
  
or her. They are horribly superstitious. They are also quite malicious, I would not be surprised if   
  
they would attempt an assasination. Mother's expression becomes stern.  
  
"Don't worry, Rumiko. Tso, Bai and I will protect you. I promise that we will not allow anything to   
  
happen to you or your child. Do you understand?"  
  
Rumiko-hime nods weakly.  
  
"There's a good girl. How long have you been hiding this?" Mother asks.   
  
"A little more than four months," Rumiko-hime answers.  
  
"You're a very sneaky one," Mother says, "But you must tell Marl, he does deserve to know,"  
  
Rumiko-hime nodded, smiling.  
  
"And don't worry. Either Bai, Tso or myself will be with you at all times afterwards, the others will   
  
not try anything in our presence. Do not go anywhere alone after you tell him, understand?"   
  
Mother asks.  
  
another nod.   
  
Rumiko-hime did tell father that very day. I now see why she did not at first. Within three   
  
minutes, everyone else knew. He told everyone and I do mean everyone. Naturally, his other   
  
wives began to fret and they rushed to the temple to pray for blessings good fortune and I am   
  
quite sure, a slew of unpleasant things as well. True to her word, Mother made sure that one of   
  
us was with Rumiko-hime wherever she went. We all grew exxtremely close. Rumiko-hime ended   
  
up moving into our spare room as her pregnancy went on.   
  
It has now been four months since she came to our bungalow, afraid and distraught. Now she is   
  
smiling and happy. She has also grown quite large, her slight frame is rather bizarre looking now   
  
that her abdomen has swollen so much. I am watching her today. She sits in the sun on the bench   
  
where I sat the night of the wedding. I am currently standing on a bridge directly across from   
  
her. I see Dai Gui and Shendu coming. I look at them and glare as hard as I an. They get the   
  
message and take another route.  
  
"Tso! come here!" Rumiko-hime shouts. I make my way quickly over to her.  
  
"Yes?" I ask.  
  
"Its kicking Tso! Feel it!"  
  
I put one of my lower hands on her swollen belly, very carefully, I have no idea how sensitive it   
  
may be. Sure enough, something is moving inside her. Suddenly, the kicking stops, it is replaced   
  
by a feeling of something running over the place whee my hand is. Someone knows I'm here. I am   
  
speechless, my throat gets tight. In this intant, it all becomes real. My sibling is touching me. It   
  
is a living being, not an idea or a curse. It is a child, who has no idea of the trouble it has caused.   
  
its my brother or sister, just like Bai. The little hand gets bored and moves on to something else.   
  
For a few minutes, I just stand there stunned. Rumiko-hime smiles at me. She is definitely like   
  
tea.  
end chapter 4  
Well, that's the end of chapter 4.  
Disclaimer-I don't own JCA, but I do own a Feng Shui windchime.  
Oh, a little author's note: Rei has a sense of precognition, she has visions of fragments of events that have not yet happened. She really said "Hsi", but it sounded like "she". Points to anyone sho made the connection. 


	5. Yin and Yang

Chapter 5-Yin and Yang  
Chapter 5! Whee! This thing is fun to write.  
Thanks for reading Spleef (your site rocks!) and Asher Tye for reviewing! -sigh!- I feel the love!  
((~_*)) The Chibi Hime smilie!  
On with chapter 5!  
Disclaimer-I don't own JCA, I do own a Marvel Super Heroes mug with my name on it.  
  
Chapter 5  
  
It is funny how love and hate go hand in hand. One moment, you can experience the ecstasy of   
  
love and compassion, the next be bombarded with such hate and rage that you feel your soul will   
  
be consumed. I have noted this, now that I reflect on my life, but the first time I really   
  
experienced the extremes of yin and yang on the same day was the day my youngest brother was   
  
born...............  
  
"Tso!" Rumiko-hime called me from inside her room.   
  
I closed the book which had been on my desk and got up to ansswer her. She had been living with   
  
us, as I have mentioned. We have all grown acustomed to her, I will miss her when she returns to   
  
her bungalow, if she does indeed return. rumiko-hime is standing by the oor, dressed in casual   
  
clothes, she is now bulging so much, it appears as if she would burst. She wears her smile as well   
  
as her favorite hair clip, a dragon with set ruby eyes.   
  
"Tso, let's go to the market and get some fresh green onions. We neeed spices too, none of the   
  
spices here have the effect of wasabi, but I guaantee that a merchant somewhere in this city has   
  
something like it!"  
  
"Are you sure you should be traveling, Rumiko-hime?"  
  
"Why are you always so formal, Tso? You can call me Rumiko, we're close family, right?"  
  
"You are avoiding my question," I say.  
  
"Yes, I'm alright to travel. Thank you for asking. Sometimes I wonder if there's a little human in   
  
you somewhere,"  
  
"........................"  
  
"Don't worry, I'm kidding," she says.  
  
We leave the palace and head for the marketplace, a short walk for us. The smells of the   
  
marketplace are those of spice, leather, fish and flowers. Quite wonderful, but the people there   
  
are sometimes strange. They either look at me with fear, hate or curiosity. Are demons really   
  
becoming so rare in the world? When father was a child, the earth was covered with thousands   
  
of demons, every town had several. No, only a few lands remained under demon control. Sad.  
  
Everyone looks at Rumiko-hime with admiration, even in this unglorious state, she is the most   
  
gorgeous woman there. Her beauty is magnified by the fact that she has never thought this   
  
about herself. She chats quaintly with an old woman who sells spices. Then, she speaks with the   
  
girl who sells vegetables, with the man who sells the pickled cucumbers and with another woman   
  
who sells sweets. They all wish her and her new child well, she responds by bowing politely and   
  
saying her thanks. Do they know that she is my father's wife? They must, many attended the   
  
ceremony. But, many act as though they have never seen her before, does she really look that   
  
different?  
  
We headed back home after our shopping was completed. Rumiko-hime pulled out a few sweets   
  
and offered me one. Iaccepted and received a small, honey flavored nut cluster. Quite good,   
  
actually. The princess herself consumed three of these, as well as a few tree sap taffies, quite   
  
similar to the Canadian maple candies I have seen in my later years.  
  
We had almost made it home when I heard footsteps behind us. A man's voice shouted:  
  
"Demon whore,"  
  
Both Rumiko-hime and I turn around. He is a tall, muscular man that has a scar on his right   
  
cheek. He glares with hatred at Rumiko-hime. How anyone could hate someone so kind is beyond   
  
my comprehension. Especially if they do not know her at all. How dare he make such a judgement   
  
about her! She is the wife of his lord! A place of high esteem! How dare he say something like   
  
that! My eyes burn brighter than usual.  
  
"What did you say?" I ask in a deep, enraged, but controlled voice.  
  
"Slut!" he shouted at her, ignoring me.  
  
"You whore! you sell yourself to a demon! So he can lay with you and you are cursed to bear his   
  
hideous, half formed children! You betray humanity to lay beside a monster!"  
  
"Marl isn't a monster, he's a demon," Rumiko-hime says.  
  
I am impressed by this woman, so deep is her loyalty, that she defends the ones she loves before   
  
herself. The man steps up to her and attempts to slap her. His hand is caught by mine, I   
  
squeeze him-hard! The sickening crunch of bones can be heard, he screams as his hand is   
  
destroyed. The violent side of me has been awakened, it calls for the punishment of this being.   
  
My body wants to do something, but it cannot. I don't know what it wants and this frustrates me.   
  
I grab the man by the neck and lift him off the ground. No man endangers a member of my   
  
family!  
  
"Listen to me, you bastard! She is the wife of your master and a princess! You will show her all   
  
the respect that she deserves! Beg for her forgiveness!"  
  
"I'll never beg for that demon bitch's forgiveness!" he growls and spits in my face. I squeeze   
  
tighter on his neck.  
  
"No, Tso! He's not worth it! Let's go home!" Rumiko-hime calls, her voice near tears.  
  
I drop the man and kick him for good measure.  
  
We race back inside the palace gate. I quickly bolt the door and turn to the shaking princess.  
  
"Tso..could he be right?"  
  
"What?" I ask, surprised that she would listen to a madman.  
  
"About the baby? Could something be wrong with it, because its half human? I couldn't live with   
  
myself if I was the cause of my child's suffering!" she is openly sobbing onto my chest now. I've   
  
grown a few inches since she first arrive. I am barely taller than her. I tell her not to worry. I   
  
pick her up and carry her home. She has calmed down by the time we reach the porch. A   
  
windchime tinkles lightly. Its Bai's she bought it from the same old woman we bought the spice   
  
from. I lay Rumiko-hime on her bed and return to my room, where I fall asleep at my desk, my   
  
cheek caressed by moonlight.  
  
...................................  
  
I am awakened sevral hours later by a scream of pain that goes to my bones. My eyes shoot   
  
open as I wait in the dark. I hear voices, Mother, Bai, the palace doctor and Lu Song? Xiao and   
  
Po's mother? Why would she be here? Come to think of it, she was the only one other than   
  
Mother to treat Rumiko-hime with any respect. If she's here, then......my God! Today? But,   
  
Rumiko-hime wasn't due for another three weeks!   
  
Bai enter my room and asks me to come into the common room with her. I loyally follow. The   
  
door to Rumiko-hime's room is closed, but everyone's shadows are projected onto the thin rice   
  
paper door by a lantern. Another cry makes my skin crawl. rumiko-hime's shadow betrays her   
  
dissheveled sweaty hair that is strewn about her person. I hear deep breathing and sighs coming   
  
from the other side of the door. I also hear several voices.  
  
"Just rest, Lady rumiko, and push hard after you've regained yor stregnth,"  
  
"What kind of doctor are you? She needs to get that baby's head out or it'll suffocate! Let me do   
  
it! Lu song bellows. I see where Po got her voice.  
  
"Madam, I'm a fine physician,"  
  
"I'm sure you are, but you're also a man! Why don't I get a Lady Lu?"  
  
"I,"  
  
"Never mind, out of the way!" Lu shouts and shoves him rudely. The stunned doctor brushed   
  
himself off. This shadow play was quite entertaining. I look over to Bai, who is seated at the   
  
other side of the table. She's wetting washclothes. She looks horribly uncomfortable with this.  
  
"Bai? Waht's wrong? You can tell me?"   
  
"I don't like this. It's too weird,"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Having a baby,"  
  
I understand.   
  
"It'll be over soon," I say.  
  
"I guess you're right," she said. She got up and slithered into Rumiko-hime's room. I am   
  
momentarily able to see Mother and Lu's heads and Rumiko-hime's legs. The door is then closed.   
  
Bai's shadow places a wet cloth on Rumiko-hime's head. I watch the shadow play for hours. I   
  
drift off to sleep again.   
  
Two hours later, A final scream awakens me again. I awaken in time to see the final act of the   
  
shadow play. I see Rumiko-hime's shadow arched and she shakes with strain. She groans with   
  
effort,then finally gasps and collapses. She lays there breathing heavily while the others busy   
  
themselves with something else. I notice that the doctor was gone, probably removed by Lu. I   
  
hear a faint squeal, nothing like crying, more of a surprise and question.   
  
"He's a cute one!" I hear Lu say. I don't think I've ever heard her say anything nice. Bai comes   
  
out, goes straight to her room and collapses on the bed, asleep before she hits the pillow. She   
  
leaves the door open.  
  
I get up and slowly walk towards the door. Mother welcomes me. I step inside. Lu busies   
  
herself with picking up bloody clothes and discarded washclothes. Rumiko-hime has collapsed   
  
from exhaustion and is sleeping now, a smile gracing her face. I look over to the crib that has   
  
been brought in I peer over the side. I cannot see exactly what my new sibling looks like, for it is   
  
wrapped up to its head in blankets. Its skin is dark grey or black, three small spikes grace its   
  
head. The little thing sneezes and opens a pair of bright grey eyes. I am startled, I have never   
  
seen a demon that didn't have red eyes.  
  
"Don't worry, Tso. All human babies eyes change color, his will too,"  
  
"Mother?"  
  
"Tso, meet your new little brother, Hsi Wu,"  
  
"Hsi Wu?"  
  
"Yes, he's a darling little thing, I hope he doesn't mind that we bound up his wings with those   
  
blankets. We can't have him catch cold,"  
  
"Mother is Rumiko-hime alright?"  
  
"Yes, Tso,"  
  
"And Hsi?"  
  
"He's just fine. You better go to sleep, tomorrow, your father is coming to visit and I want   
  
everyone to look their best. Lu and I will take turns waching Hsi throught he night,"  
  
"Yes, Mother,"  
  
I take my leave, those grey eyes burned into my mind. I felt that my little brother had   
  
recognized me. But children this young could not recognize visuals, they were practically blind,   
  
but still. There was something about hm that seemes, not quite right for a demon, or maybe I   
  
was just being paranoid.  
  
End Chapter 5 


	6. Hsi Wu

Well, now we're into sibling bonding, yay! Loyalty, cruelty, love and tragedy begin to play into the demon's lives, can they possibly survive?  
Thanks for reading: Tajeri Lynn, Spleef and Asher Tye! ((~_*)) I really appreciate you guys taking the time to review! REALLY!  
Thanks so much!  
disclaimer: I don't own JCA or a cabbit, but I do own an Adam West autograph (Mr. West was super nice when I met him at a con two years ago!)   
  
Chapter 6  
Hsi Wu  
  
  
I awaken in the morning. Father is already there, he is speaking to Rumiko-hime, whispering in   
  
her ear, kissing and hugging her. He holds Hsi Wu in his arms, the little fellow looks perplexed and   
  
unsure of this large stranger. He does not recognize father's voice, for he has not visited us for   
  
some time. It was not that he did not want to, but something very pressing had taken up most of   
  
his time. I know not what it was, or rather, is, as he is still quite busy with it. All I know is that it   
  
somehow involves the Western Demons, our very disant cousins. I am not worried about it, their   
  
problems are not my concern. Our two families split years ago over irreconcilable differences.  
  
Father hands Hsi back to Rumiko-hime, who holds him to her chest and hums softly. She is in a   
  
state of ecstasy, I can tell by the way she sighs. Hsi bats his enormous eyes a few times before   
  
closing them and falling asleep. Father whispers something to Rumiko-hime, she blushes. He   
  
brushes a strand of black hair from her face and holds her small face in his enormous talon. His   
  
lips mouth "I love you". rumiko-hime smiles her graceful smile and returns his affection. He   
  
takes his leave, knowing that Rumiko-hime needs her rest.   
  
I am waiting outside the door. when he sees me, he places a claw on my shoulder and pats me   
  
several times. I am perplexed, more so than Hsi was a few minutes ago, he rarely stops in the   
  
library to see me anymore, once again, the infamous dealings prevent him from being where he   
  
wants to be. He never speaks to me anymore, I don't know why. He speaks to his wives, Tchang   
  
and Shendu. Everyone else is left on their own. I do not hate him, he has done nothing to deserve   
  
that. I know that as demon lord, his work is important to the survival of all the people in his   
  
kingdom, not just us. I hope that I can be half as strong mentally as he is. I am unsure if I could   
  
separate myself from my family, no matter how dysfunctional, in his case.  
  
Father stops to have tea with Mother and Lu Song. They laugh when Lu tells them about the   
  
doctor and how he responded to a very demanding demoness. It turns out that she became so   
  
fed up with him that she knocked his legs out from under him, grabbed him by the undergarments   
  
and threw him into the pond behind our bungalow. I can imagine Lu Song, giant, grey spiky thing   
  
that she is, grab the thin man and cast him outside. I laugh too. Mother tells him about Hsi Wu   
  
how they cared for him last night, how difficult the delivery was, how they were very worried for   
  
quite some time.  
  
"Well, I pity Rumiko-hime the most. I can't imagine giving birth to a baby with feet and hands like   
  
that. Do you know how uncomfortable that is? When Xiao was born, it was the most excruciating   
  
experience of my life. That damned head of his was worse than a stubborn cork!" Lu song says   
  
loudly.   
  
I notice she has a bottle of rice wine sitting next to her tea cup. She's spiking her tea.  
  
"Lu!" scolds Mother.  
  
"Now you, Rei, You were lucky. You might have had two at once, but Tso wasn''t hard. He was   
  
first, I remember. I delivered them both, the old midwife, she was worthlewss as well, I think   
  
Syra Seo ate her after Dai Gui was born and that's when we got that reed of a man. Anyway, Tso   
  
came first, he took awhile, but he didn't put up much of a fight. Now, here's where your luck   
  
comes in, Rei. Bai Tsa. Bai Tsa, Kami-sama bless her! She hasn't got feet! once we got her   
  
shoulders out we just pulled and she came right out! The whole thing took fifteen minutes! Now   
  
that Hsi Wu! He was trouble! First of all, he didn't come head first, he came feet first. Always a   
  
bad sign. Then his wing got lodged and he was stuck for awhile. I'm amazed that girl wasn't killed.   
  
You always could pick 'em, Marl," she continues, I notice her cheeks are pink.   
  
"Lu!" Mother whispers loudly.  
  
"Oh, Rei, don't let her worry you. I rather enjoy her outbursts, that's why I married her!" Father   
  
laughs.  
  
"Shut Up Marl, you seductive bastard," Lu says.  
  
"You didn't say that last month, December woman!" he counters,"You said something rather   
  
different the last time you came to see me. As a matter of fact, you'd been into the rice wine,   
  
too,"  
  
They enjoy this spat. Its not malice, its their way of flirting. Lu likes it and so does father.   
  
Mother stifles a laugh.  
  
Their happiness is broken by a human messenger.  
  
"My lord, urgent news from the West,"  
  
Father looks saddened, He gives both of his wives a kiss, tells them that he loves them and   
  
leaves. Lu looks dissappointed.  
  
"And here I thought we were in for some action, Rei. We could have a threesome or something,   
  
Remember the good old days when all of us would.."  
  
"Lu! Not in front of my son!" Mother shouts.  
  
Mother takes the small bottle of rice wine and throws it into the pond, the same pond Lu threw   
  
the doctor in.   
  
  
Mother has a fiery temper when angered. i raise an eyebrow and leave the room. I go into   
  
Rumiko-hime's room. Hsi Wu is awake again, the outburst in the sitting room must have   
  
awakened him. His eyes are darkening, I see it. It will actually miss his piercing grey eyes. i pick   
  
him up and hold him close. Mother says it is important to hold infants as much as possible. This   
  
early stage is when they learn to trust. A small clawed hand reaches out of the blanket and   
  
grabs my robe. I blink and look my brother in the eyes. He looks all demon to me, but I still   
  
haven't seen much of him, only his face and now his hand. I actually want to see these infamous   
  
wings i have heard so much about. I know that it is a miracle that he did not die. By some twist   
  
of fate, he survived. My brother survived, for what reason? He is needed, somewhere at   
  
sometime, someone needs him. Nothing happens by accident, Mother said. The little hand still   
  
grasps tightly at my robe. I touch his cheek, it is so soft. A tiny pink tongue peeks out of his   
  
mouth licks his lips. I suddenly smell sulfur.   
  
A small pair of red eyes glare at me through the rice paper door. I slide it open and surprise a   
  
certain golden dragon child on the other side.  
  
"Leave Shendu, there is nothing of your interest here," I try to sound intimidating so the little rat   
  
will go away, but he stays.   
  
"Oh, but I believe there is," his disgustingly hissing voice says.  
  
"My mother said that the half-breed was finally born. I want to see if it really is as ugly as   
  
mother says it is," his eyes narrow and he smiles coldly.  
  
I cannot stand this little beast.  
  
"He is your brother, I will not allow you to talk of him so lowly," I say, I clutch Hsi tighter, he   
  
whimpers.  
  
"You've got him, haven't you, Tso!" he accuses.  
  
"Maybe, impudent brat!"  
  
Shendu is enraged, his eyes glow brilliant, if he were old enough to spout flames, he would. He   
  
is prparing to throw one of his fits, I know it. His fists are clenching and he's growling in hs   
  
throat. Before he can do anything, a very drunk Lu song bursts into the room. She has totally   
  
forgotten that Rumiko-hime is sleeping in her drunken stupor. She glares at Shendu and stomps   
  
one of her gigantic feet. Shendu's act falls and he reveals himself to be the coward that he is.   
  
He lowers himself to the ground and whimpers. Lu is not in the mood for this. Her eyes narrow   
  
and a snarl rises in her throat.  
  
"Shendu! You wretched little cuss! Get the hell out of here before I eat you myself, little weasel! "   
  
She bellows at him.  
  
He shrieks a very high pitched squeak and runs away, heading straight for his mother's   
  
bungalow.  
  
Lu wipes the spit from her mouth.  
  
"Annoying little shit, isn't he, Tso?"  
  
I nod.  
  
I also wonder why he was here. I look into the darkening eyes in my arms and I worry. I worry   
  
about this new life in my arms. I hold him close and swear to protect him, always.  
  
End chapter 6 


	7. A Short Time Later

WOW! Everyone loves this?!-I'm so touched! Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! ((~_*))  
Diclaimer:I don't own JCA, I own a cool figure of Kaneda from Akira (on his bike!)  
Chapter 7-A Short Time Later  
  
I finally saw my brother, all of him. I It was the day after my confrontation with Shendu. I see   
  
the human in him now. It may not be visible to the untrained eye, but evidence is there   
  
nonetheless. He is small, even as a child. I have no doubts that he will be the smallest of us, now   
  
and when he is grown. His body shape, save for hs hands, feet, face and yes, those infamous   
  
wings, is almost completely human. I wonder what his future holds for him. He sits there looking   
  
at us all with crimson, but not yet luminiscent eyes. He does not know that something is   
  
different about him, that some will interperet is as "freakishness" or "a mistake". He claps his   
  
tiny, clawed hands in front of his face and cos softly. Mother says he develops faster than other   
  
human infants because of his demon half. His eyes focus on objects, that is something no human   
  
child could do until weeks after their birth.   
  
I am in the library again, attempting to learn the Greek alphabet. For no particular reason, only   
  
to improve my knowledge. I sense movement outside the window. I glance up and see Bai slink   
  
quickly down the path. I stare after her momentarily, then I close the book, get up and go after   
  
her. Bai has been acting strange as of late. She secludes herself for hours at a time, she rarely   
  
speaks to me anymore, she seems uncomfortable in my presence. Perhaps, strangest of all, she   
  
has begun to wear a baggy robe, it does not go past her waist, but she insists upon wearing it   
  
everywhere. She has also become very short tempered and she cries suddenly at times. I am   
  
worried about her. We have been together for as long as I can remember. To see her in such a   
  
state ad being unable to help her is maddening. I have decided to find out for myself what this is   
  
and help my beloved sister overcome it.  
  
I find her behind our bungalow under a tree. Her tail is drawn up, she rests her head on it, her   
  
hands are wrapped around it as well. If she were human, she would be hugging her knees. She   
  
glares at the world with angry crimson orbs. I gather courage and approach her. When I reach   
  
her side, she looks up at me and in a rather harsh manner, demands:  
  
"What do you want?"   
  
It was a cold question, it hurt me.  
  
"Something is bothering you, Bai. I want to know what it is so I can help you. We've always been   
  
close, I'm worried that we will drift apart. I don't want that to happen,"  
  
"You wouldn't understand,"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"You're a boy!"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Shut up! Just shut up!" She gets up and pounds my chest with clenched fists.  
  
"Bai, stop. You're not being yourself," I grip her hands in mine.  
  
"Leave me alone!'  
  
She attempts to break free and only succeeds in losing her balance and falling against me. She   
  
leans on me, trying to regain her balance. As she does so, I notice something different. It feels   
  
as though there is a pillow between us, her chest and mine. Realization dawns brightly.  
  
"Bai? Is that why you've been wearing that ridiculous robe? Why you've been avoiding me?"  
  
Her eyes reflect a suffering I could never understand. Her face turns pink and she looks   
  
upset. She pushes away from me and crosses her arms across her chest very tightly. Her   
  
shoulders quiver and she shakily sighs.  
  
"Its everything, Tso. I'm sorry. I'm sorry! I can't stand this! Why do I have to suffer because I'm   
  
a girl? And it's just so weird! All of it! And that......that little THING being born and, and having to   
  
watch! I can't stand it!"  
  
She hugs me tightly, quite the opposite of what she was doing a few minutes ago. She sobs into   
  
my chest.  
  
"Oh Tso, I'm sorry! I don't mean to be bad!"  
  
"You're not bad, Bai. You're growing up, its alright to feel scared or unsure. I'm sure that I will   
  
find out sooner or later,"  
  
"Thank You,"  
  
"........."  
  
"Thank you for always being there foe me, even before we were born,"  
  
She stops shaking and smiles up at me. Her tears glisten like dewdrops on her cheeks.  
  
..................................  
  
We both return to our bungalow, Bai goes staight to her room. I check on Hsi Wu. He is babbling   
  
and sucking on one of his claws. I lean over his crib and shake a small stuffed pig with a bell in it   
  
over his head. He stares at it as if it were an ancient relic. He suddenly seizes it and attempts   
  
to pull it from my grasp. What he lacks in stregnth, he makes up for in determination.  
  
"Your brother loves you already, Tso,"  
  
"Rumiko-hime!"  
  
She's awake, her eyes are baggy, her hair dissheveled and her chi, despite its positive flow, is   
  
weak and exhausted. A great deal of her spirit energy has been drained. It will take time to   
  
regenerate, but it will return.  
  
  
"I'm glad you come to see him, Tso. Hsi will need whatever companionship he can find in his life. I   
  
fear that Shendu's attitude will be repeated by all who meet Hsi,"  
  
"Shendu is a spoiled and wicked child who will someday be justly punished,"  
  
"I'm afraid for my son , Tso,"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I'm afraid that he will be hurt so much, he will think nothing of hurting someone else. I don't want   
  
that for him. I want him to be happy,"  
  
"I understand, Rumiko-hime. We won't let anything happen to Hsi. Mother, Bai and I all love him,"  
  
"Thank you, Tso,"  
  
She sighs and drifts back into sleep, her spirit energy will be restored more quickly if she   
  
sleeps. I look once more at Hsi, who looks back with that piercing gaze of his. I smile at him and   
  
wave good-bye with both of my right hands. He raises his right hand and makes a primitive   
  
attempt to wave back. I leave the room and head back out the way I came.   
  
..........................  
  
"Syra Seo, you will keep your children away from my home. I do not appreciate your son's   
  
trespassing," Mother says, barely able to contain her irritability.  
  
I sit beside her inside Syra Seo's bungalow. Mother has come to tell her to keep her offspring on   
  
her side of the palace. Syra has a calculating, arrogant gaze which I find terrifyng. Shendu sits   
  
on her lap, she pats him as if he were a lapdog. A purring comes from his throat.  
  
"You would allow an unidentifiable demon who becomes drunk before nine in the morning access to   
  
your bungalow, but exclude my little angel?" Syra Seo asks in a syrupy voice. She causes me to   
  
shudder. Shendu narrows the little cinders that he has for eyes at me. He flicks a snake-like   
  
tongue.  
  
"Yes, and I mean Dai Gui as well," Mother answers.  
  
"Why?" Syra asks coldly.  
  
"Your "angels" are insulting, cold, cruel, selfish and violent. They do not provide a positive   
  
development environment for Master Hsi Wu,"   
  
"You speak of that half-breed as if it were on equal standing with Shendu or Dai Gui," Syra laughs   
  
cruelly.  
  
"He is. He is the son of Marl Kung, destined to become a great Demon Sorceror,"  
  
"How can one become a Demon Sorceror if they are not fully demon?" Syra raises a spiked   
  
eyebrow. She twists one of her whiskers in a claw.  
  
" You are avoiding my request. If it is too difficult to keep your two children away from my home,   
  
I will have to speak with Marl, Syra," Mother says flatly.  
  
Syra looks momentarily panicked, she knows father's rages. She nods in silent agreement,   
  
albeit quite reluctantly. That is where Shendu gets his spoiled nature, from Syra. Mother thanks   
  
her for cooperating. We bow and return to our home.  
  
..................  
  
We all eat in Rumiko-hime's room. Hsi Wu sleeps, softly sighing now and again, the pig toy we   
  
played with earlier is clenched tightly in his hand. Mother, Rumiko-hime and I are eating when Bai   
  
comes in. She is no longer wearing her robe and for the first time, I notice the way her body   
  
curves in certain areas. She's become an adolescent, I wonder when her powers will emerge? Bai   
  
has returned to her normal self. Very cheerful and helpful, it is as if she has come to terms with   
  
her insecurities, well, almost, she shoots a questioning glance in Hsi Wu's direction. One step at a   
  
time, I suppose. She winks at me and hands me a small rice wine bottle. It is the one that   
  
mother threw into the pond yesterday. The pond is more than thirty feet deep, it is more of a   
  
lake than a pond. Ahhhhhhh, Bai has used a new talent to retrieve this bottle. I look at her and   
  
she gives a proud smile. I am proud of her as well. I can't help but wonder when my powers will   
  
emerge.  
  
After dinner, we al return to our various rooms and attempt to fall asleep. For me, this is no   
  
easy task. My head throbs, as if the entire gravity of the earth were pressing upon it. I lay on   
  
my back on the bed and look out my window, the moon is there, full and bright. I feel drawn to it.   
  
The pain increases until, thankfully, I lose consciousness and escape is clutches.  
  
End Chapter 7 


	8. A Whisper of the West

Hi! LM will continue in a moment, but first, a short note on a few topics, I want no confusion for my readers, so I'm taking the time to explain a few things, there's also a little bit of fun for you guys too. Disclaimer-I don't own JCA, but I do own a conch horn (you know, those cool shell deals that they have at luaus?)  
  
Okay, first of all, Hsi is the only half breed of the family. True, the others mothers are different types of monsters, but they're all demons. Rumiko-hime is Marl's only human wife. Thus, she is something that none of them, save Rei and possibly Lu, understand. All of them are extremely elitist and view Hsi as lower than their children (except for the two mentioned above). Humans are lower than demons in their mind, they are ruled over, not married, although this has happened before in "their" history. Another point, an Oni is a specific kind of japanese demon, though often translated as "demon" it is not really what the western mind considers a "demon".   
Yet another point, if Tso Lan is the oldest, why does Tchang Zu boss all the others around? I would hate it if a younger sibling ordered me around!   
Last thing before the fun-Why did Daolon Wong turn the Enforcers into Dark chi umm-things? I missed that episode GAHHHHH! And now Finn is no longer cool looking (No disco suit? What the #@$&?, at least Chow has a whooping pony tail ((~_*))) there better be a halfway decent explanation!  
  
fun part, yay-you were waiting for this, weren't you (nod?) Okay. Chibi Hime presents  
  
Lotus Moon- The unofficial soundtrack!  
Songs to put you in the mood for this fic! Coolness! Remember, I don't own these either! I don't claim to, don't sue me. They get you in the groove for a few minutes of reading-Chibi Hime style!  
  
1. Baby Mine (The Alison Krauss version-the most beautiful version of this song ever!)-Rumiko-hime's theme for Hsi  
2. En Mi Corazon, Tu Viviras-(The Spanish version of Phil Collins' "You'll be in My Heart")-Just on here to add feeling- A song for Hsi from the main cast (i.e. Rumiko-hime, Tso, Bai, Rei)  
3.The Journey of Man-An overall theme (from the Cirque Du Soleil Imax movie, the sung version, not the instrumental version)  
4.Fly Me to the Moon-Obviously, Tso's theme.  
5.Better Off Alone-by Alice Deejay (this song won't come into play for awhile, but its the theme for a character who Hsi saves from a Shadow khan)  
6. Dies Irae from "requiem" by Mozart. Its the theme of the upcoming battle, turns out, there's a lot going on in the land to the West.  
Okay- now on with ch. 8!  
  
  
Chapter 8-A Whisper of the West  
  
Hsi Wu is eight months old today, the days pass like hours, so fast, so wonderful. I wish they   
  
could last forever. But every good thing, sadly, must end. So I will enjoy these peaceful days as   
  
long as I can. Hsi pulls on my robe. He is quite mobile, now. He crawls faster than most toddlers   
  
can walk. He has a bizarre manner of crawling on all fours, not truly crawling at all, more in the   
  
manner of scampering, I believe.  
  
"Tso, Tso Tso," he babbles, grinning madly and tugging harder at the hem of my robe.  
  
I smile down at the little being and pick him up. He purrs and grabs at one of my mandibles. He   
  
is a very inquisitive creature.His enormous eyes glow brightly.  
  
"Hsi Wu?" Rumiko-hime's musical voice calls out to us.   
  
We both turn to face her. She has recovered all her lost Chi energy and I believe gained a great   
  
capacity for it. She lives for Hsi, I feel it. I feel her Chi energy wrapping around him. He doesn't   
  
understand, I wonder if he even feels it.   
  
"There you are. Are you bothering your elder brother, yet again?" she asks, smiling softly, her   
  
face wearing an expression of serenity.   
  
Hsi reaches for her, repeatedly opening and closing his hands.  
  
"Oka-san," he squeals, attempting to wriggle out of my arms.  
  
Rumiko-hime takes him and hugs him close to her.  
  
"Hsi, my wonderful little darling. Have you been good?" she asks, her gorgeous brown eyes seem   
  
to glow themselves.  
  
Hsi blinks up at her and blows a spit bubble. I laugh.  
  
"Tso Lan, did you just laugh?" Rumiko-hime asks.  
  
"Yes, apparently, Hsi brings out unexpected things in everyone," I answer simply.  
  
"He does, doesn't he?" Rumiko-hime looks deeply at Hsi who feels at her face with his taloned   
  
hands.  
  
"Mi'lady! Milady Rumiko!"  
  
"Rumiko-hime!"  
  
Two voices interrupt her. Two orange haired women with bright green markings about their   
  
bodies slide the door open. Chi Guardians. Specifically, Rune and Toki, two of the three Chi   
  
Guardians in charge of father's temple. I wonder what could be so important for them to leave   
  
their post? Their olive skinned faces carry looks of panic and concern. Something prickles at   
  
the back of my neck, I turn quickly to see if something is there, but alas, there is nothing.   
  
Something is wrong. I feel it, I see it in the eyes of the Chi Guardians, their markings pulse with   
  
the exorbinant amount of Chi, as do their fiery electric green eyes. The second, Rune, a deep   
  
voiced woman clears her throat.  
  
"Begging you pardon, Rumiko-hime, but Master Kung requests that you join him immediately in the   
  
main court. It is a matter of utmost importance. I know that you treasure the time ou spend   
  
with your son, but this is a very pressing matter,"  
  
She casts a glance at me. I look away, her penetrating green eyes upset my own Chi.   
  
Rumiko-hime hands Hsi back to me.  
  
"Of course I will come. Tso, please watch Hsi for me," she sounds troubled.  
  
The second chi Guardian nods, her younger companion, Toki nods as well. Rumiko-hime assumes   
  
her regal stance and follows the two Chi Guardians to Father's main court. I watch them leave.   
  
Hsi stares after her, perplexed. He reaches for her and whimpers.  
  
"Shh, Hsi, be quiet. She'll be back soon," I tell him.  
  
"Oka-san. OKKKKKKAAAAA-SAAAAAAAN," he shouts.  
  
"For goodness sakes, Tso, can't you keep that little wretch quiet?"  
  
Tchang Zu. I'd recognize his snobbish voice anywhere. Hsi Wu whimpers and buries his head in   
  
my robe.   
  
"What are you doing here, Tchang?" I demmand, I grow weary of his elitist attitude.  
  
"On my way to see Father. There is a delegation from the West here to discuss some important   
  
matters. What's the matter, second son? Were you excluded so you could babysit this little   
  
abomination?"  
  
"Leave,"  
  
"Hit a nerve, did I, little brother?"  
  
"Tchang!" his mother Xia calls for him.  
  
"Coming, Mother," he shouts back. In a lowered tone he speaks to me:  
  
"Better luck next time, you pale faced weakling. Good bye, Tso and , heh, little Hsi,"  
  
He hisses Hsi's name in a snakelike manner. He gives me a shove, knocking Hsi and I against the   
  
wall. Tchang makes some energy crackle between his fingers and ten heads quickly for the   
  
waiting Xia.   
  
"Tso,"  
  
""Bai?"  
  
"I'll watch Hsi. You go, see what is going on,"  
  
"But Bai, I promised Rumiko-hime,"  
  
"I'll take care of Hsi Wu. He likes me too. You go watch, you're better about analyzing formal   
  
events than I am. Besides, I want to know what's wrong with the air,"  
  
"The air?"  
  
"Yes, Tso. Can't you feel it? It as if the air.....is dead,"  
  
I reach out with my Chi, the air is static. Usually it flows with ever-changing fluctuations of   
  
power. The shiver returns to my neck, something evil is in the land of the West, something that   
  
is approaching. Something that makes the very Chi of the planet stop. Without another thought,   
  
I hand Hsi to Bai and make my way toward the main court.   
  
...........................  
  
Upon arriving, I decide not to stand were I am visible, it would worry Rumiko-hime to see me   
  
wihout Hsi. I quickly select a screen with a crane pianted on it as a hiding place.   
  
"Tso Lan?"  
  
Apparently, my hiding place is not good enough.  
  
Wait, that voice, it's Teng Marzipan! The human Chi-Seer! One of only three in the world. Teng   
  
works in father's temple, she commands our three Chi Guardians, although she herself is human.   
  
My siblings show her respect because of her position and her power, I often wondered how she   
  
viewed them. I am suddenly not so ashamed that a person has found my hiding place. No one can   
  
hide from a Chi-Seer. The strange eye marking in the center of her forehead glow brightly, her   
  
Chi-seer powers acivated. Teng must have seen my aura with that Chi eye of hers. She smiles   
  
at me, regarding me with her violet eyes. She is clothed in dark maroon men's clothing and her   
  
long, straight black hair runs past her waist.   
  
"Teng?"  
  
  
"You haven't visited us in a long while, Tso Lan," she says to me.  
  
"I'm sorry Teng. I hve found myself busy, with Hsi and everyone else,"  
  
"Ah yes, Rumiko-hime's son! She comes to the temple every day to pray for him. I look forward   
  
to his presentation in four months. I should much like to meet your little brother,"  
  
"Yes, Teng, What is this about?"  
  
"There are rumors of dark forces rising in the land of the west. A delegation of Chi Guardians,   
  
Chi Beasts and Western Demons have come to ask your father for guidance. One ofthem has   
  
brought his daughter, Aku. I'd stay away from her if I were you. She's the one with the   
  
chupacabra on the leash over there,"  
  
"Thank You,"  
  
"Well, I best be on m way, Tso. I will give away your hiding place. I must look very suspicious   
  
talking to a screen. As if I did not already arouse suspicion," a clever smile graces her lips. She   
  
fans herself with her folded fan and walks gracefully to her chair on the bottom step of the   
  
stairs that lead to father's throne. Each of the upper steps is where one of father's wives sit,   
  
for once, they are all accounted for. It is the first time since the wedding that I have seen them   
  
all in the same room. I see Syra twisting a whisker, Xia strokes Father's arm reassuringly,   
  
Mother looks around the rom nervously. Rumiko-hime sits tall and dignified, I can see her noble   
  
blood evident in her behavior. Lu Song is pink cheeked as usual, I can see a rice wine bottle   
  
sticking out of her sash. Po Kong left for Japantwo weeks ago, hoping to create a kingdom for   
  
herself. Lu has been dealing with the stress the only way she knows how, drinking herself into a   
  
foul-mouthed stupor. So far, I've learned three new words that should never be repeated, how to   
  
entice my father into doing something "exciting", The various details about how I was born and   
  
how stupid the old midwife was, how Syra Seo never shaves her ankles, and several lines about   
  
Shendu, Dai Gui and Tchang Tzu that I honestly could live without. Mother told me once that Lu   
  
Song makes everything interesting, I am begining to see truth in that.  
  
My attention is suddenly drawn to the ceiling. A great Chi beast has flown through one of the   
  
windows. It is a pale gold dragon with a flaming red mane and bright green eyes, a gold medallion   
  
hangs around its scaly neck. It circles the room once, then lands beside two black Chi dragons   
  
who are already present, one with red eyes, the other with fiery orange eyes. The red maned   
  
dragon winks at Syra Seo and makes a seductive growling noise. Syra snorts contemptuously and   
  
turns away. The pale gold dragon quickly flips her off with one of its talons. I am momentarily in   
  
awe of these dragons, they posess no wings, yet fly through the air as if by magic. I shake my   
  
head and turn my attention to the western Demon who steps into the center of the Yin-Yang floor   
  
design. He bows before my father.  
  
"My lord, Marl Kung. We of the Western lands thank you for your generous hospitality. We sense   
  
that there is great evil at work in our lands. We wish to confrnt it so that it may not harm any   
  
of our families. We beseech you to allow your honorable Chi-Seer to see if our greatest fears are   
  
being realized. Is this the work of Dark Chi wizards?"  
  
I notice the red maned dragon tenses.  
  
"Teng," Father says.  
  
Teng rises, the eye symbol on her head glows brightly as she searches for the answer. Her   
  
violet eyes rise slowly to meet those of the western Demon, whose crimson eyes are wracked   
  
with worry. A strange smile crosses her face, the entire room goes silent, the air grows dead.  
  
"The Dark Chi wizards are gathering energy. Infecting Chi sources with darkness and polluting   
  
entire shrines. Go home to the West. Stop them, or we shall all die, as the people of   
  
Rumiko-hime's state died,"  
  
A loud gasp arises from the assembled. Rumiko-hime's face is frigid and stern, this is not the   
  
Rumiko-hime know. The Western Demon swears that he will and leaves immediately. He picks up   
  
his daughter, an eerily pretty, but terrifying little girl and crries her out at once. The small   
  
brown beast she has on a leash cries ot as it is pulled along behind them.  
  
Teng has seated herself, the leader of the Chi Guardians of father's temple, Virgo, speaks to   
  
her. Virgo brushes her own bright bangs out of her face and looks around the room. The red   
  
maned dragon flies to Teng's side. They speak, but I do not know what they are saying.  
  
I look back at Rumiko-hime who seems to be frozen, Mother fidgets, Lu takes a long drink from   
  
her rice wine bottle and says very loudly:  
  
"Oh shit! Now we're all F*#@ed! Those damned Dark Chi wizards won't rest until we're all dead!   
  
Virgo! are you in shape. You're gonna need to be,"  
  
Virgo looks irked by this drunken outburst.  
  
"Rest assured, milady, We will not allow our temple to be contaminated,"  
  
"Better not be," Lu mutters.  
  
Rumiko-hime is sill stonefaced, mother approaches her and places a claw on her shoulder. I get   
  
up and leave. I find myself running back to our bungalow, as if I was being chsed by a dark force.   
  
For an odd reason, I paused before I opened the sliding door, as if I was expecting something   
  
horrible. My hands began to sweat and I shivered. I threw the door open with such force that it   
  
bounced back. Bai is seated on a cushion on the floor, Hsi is in her arms. Both are startled by   
  
my sudden entrance. For a moment, I am afraid that Hsi will cry, but he does not. Bai can tell   
  
that something is wrong.  
  
"Tso, what is it?" she asks.  
  
I can't answer.  
  
"Tso, what's wrong?"  
  
The words won't come, I can only stand there shaking.  
  
"Tso, you're scaring me!"  
  
Images begin to flood into my brain. I cannot fight them, they force their way ino my mind's   
  
eye. The door to nowhere, cries of pain,fear, hate, the stench of death surrounds me. A little   
  
red haired girl with green markings being choked by a figure that emerges from the shadows, her   
  
mouth moves, "mama". Hsi sobs, an older Hsi. A lifeless, bloody Rumiko-hime is in his arms   
  
Countless Chi Guardians are dismembered, their bodies shatter, sillouheted aginst the sky.   
  
Others are not killed, only changed, shadows of what they once were. The red maned dragon is   
  
tortured by a Dark Chi wizard who does horrible, unspeakable things to it.  
  
"TSO! TSO! What is it?" I hear Bai scream.  
  
But I can't answer, I fall to the ground, engulfed is glorious darkness  
  
End Chapter 8  
Whew! What an ending! Sorry for the wait, I hope you enjoyed it! 


	9. Possibility

Whew! It's official, Lotus Moon is now my most popular Fic! WOW! I feel the love!   
((~_*))  
Plus, I added a bunch to my webpage, so if you want, go check out what's new at the Magic Shoppe.  
Chapter 9 now begins  
Disclaimer: I don't own JCA, but I do own a plush Catbus that hangs in my car, courtesy of a suction cup.  
  
Chapter 9- Possibility  
  
I awaken, my head aching, another crushing headache. Someone dabs my forhead with a cold   
  
washcloth. Its's textured surface runs over my burning face with a heavenly coolness. I open my   
  
eyes slowly. The hateful, burning sun shines directly in them. I wrench myself into a different   
  
position and open them again, a blurry blue figure sits beside my bed.  
  
Bai?  
  
The figure becomes clearer.  
  
Its's Mother.  
  
"Mother..." I start.  
  
"Shhhhhh. It's alright Tso, you collapsed last night. You've been unconscious for hours. Bai was   
  
worried about you she was quite hysterical when Rumiko and I returned last night. She's a   
  
responsible girl, though. She had you in bed already and already had a cold compress on your   
  
head. She's such a good girl,"  
  
"She is...she......wait......Mother, I...I need to tell you, tell someone. Last night, I.......I saw terrible,   
  
horrible things that flashed through my mind. I..I saw people dying , innocent children...and   
  
there..there was nothing i could do to stop it,"  
  
"So, you saw it too then?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Tso, I don't understand the world. I doubt I even understand myself at times, but I do   
  
understand my gift, apparently, you have that gift as well. My sense of precognition has   
  
apparently been passed to you, to what degree, I am unsure,"  
  
"Mother, what are you saying?"  
  
"Tso, you are able to see visions of the possible, shadows of the events yet to come or those   
  
already past. It is a great and rare gift,"  
  
"What? To see images of nightmarish futures in which everything I know and love is laid to waste   
  
before my eyes?"  
  
"No, it is one possible future,"  
  
"How can you tell?"  
  
"Tell, Tso?"  
  
"Tell whether or not if it is the true future?"  
  
"You can't"  
  
"..............."  
  
"The universe is mysterious, eternally shifting, but we all have a destiny, we are unaware of it   
  
until it stares us directly in the eyes and whispers in our ear. Whether we walk to our greatest   
  
triumph or our ultimate destruction is out of our hands,"   
  
"Mother.."  
  
"Enough, Tso. Speak to no one of this, what will come to pass is not ours to decide or divulge.   
  
Since our visions are unpredictable and at times, innacurrate, I think it is best to remain silent in   
  
such extreme cases,"  
  
"But, before Hsi was born, you said, you said something about a door to nowhere and Hsi being   
  
there. You didn't even know hewas alive then, right under our noses,"  
  
"That was different, Tso,"  
  
"How? There has been a door to nowhere in countless nightmares that have plagued my mind for   
  
the last year! I'm pulled into Hell! A barren wasteland of nothing and I have no idea why!"  
  
"Hmmmm, perhaps it is symbolic, these visions cannot always be taken literally,"  
  
"But, it feels so real,"  
  
"They always do. You should rest for now, Bai will check on you later,"  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"Marl ha srequested that Teng and I cooperate in our efforts to discover the true nature of this   
  
potential threat,"  
  
"It's a real threat, isn't it?"  
  
"Most likely,"  
  
"Why not act now?"  
  
"We are unaware of all the facts, such action would be......impetuous,"  
  
"But if we act now and stop it, we could save millions of lives!"  
  
"And what method would you use, Tso?"  
  
"I'd eliminate those who threatened the well being of balance,"  
  
"Would you kill them?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Would you kill them?"  
  
The question is disturbing. An image of a shadow being with glowing red eyes slashing the throat   
  
of a Chi Guardian enters my mind. It is a swift, merciless blow, the chi that is her blood oozes   
  
out of her neck in green rivers, her limp corpse falls with a sickening thud, her once vibrant,   
  
glowing eyes fade to a pale glaze. My face becomes firm.  
  
"Yes, "  
  
"Be careful, Tso. The world can twist a good soul such as yours to its whim,"  
  
"What would you do, Mother?"  
  
Her eyes go blank for a moment. They move back and forth as she ponders the question, at   
  
last, she answers:  
  
"I am not sure. I must be going, goodbye, Tso,"  
  
She promptly gets up and leaves me. I am uneasy at her manner, Mother is usually so open and   
  
understanding. This sudden change makes me even more wary of my visions. I am also begining   
  
to believe that the excruciating headaches I have been experiencing lately are not connected to   
  
them. At first I thought the pain was causing hallucinations and nightmares, but even when I   
  
experience no visions. I am wondering if my body is doing something behind my back. From the   
  
time I went with Rumiko-hime to the marketplace almost a year ago, I have had the most severe   
  
headaches, almost on a daily basis. I connect it with when I crushed that insulting human's hand.   
  
My body wanted to do something else. I could almost hear it whispering "Crush him, crush him". I   
  
had been deeply troubled by it at the time, but that was nothing compared to the headaches, as if   
  
my skull is crushing itself. I sigh and lay back on my pillow, at least there is only a dull throb in   
  
my head today, almost nothing at all. I hear my door slide open and closed. I turn in that   
  
direction, but there is no one there.  
  
Suddenly, a small, dark talon graps the side of my mattress. It is promptly followed by another,   
  
as well a a small spiked head. Two luminous orbs stare at me inquisitively. Hsi Wu.  
  
"What are you doing here?" I ask, fully aware that he will not answer me.  
  
Hsi grins devilishly and ducks down swiftly, leaving his two hands exactly where they are.  
  
"Where did you go?" I ask.  
  
He pops back up and ducks down again.  
  
"My, where has Hsi Wu gone? I'm sure his Oka-san will be worried,"  
  
I continue. A snicker comes from the floor. I smile and say:  
  
"If Hsi isn't here, he won't get any candy,"  
  
There is silence and a shuffling sound from the floor. Moments later, Hsi is seated on the   
  
matress.  
  
"Ah, it appears that I have lured you out. I am sorry to dissappoint you, Hsi, but I don't have any   
  
candy,"  
  
He still stares at me with his enormous eyes, grinning expectantly.  
  
Apparently someone has neglected to teach him the concept of "no".  
  
I sigh.  
  
"You know, Hsi, something very important is coming up for you, you know,"  
  
No response, I've still got his attention, though.  
  
"Yes, in a few months, you'll be a whole year old. You'll be presented at the temple, just like the   
  
rest of us were. There will be a grand celebration afterwards, with lots of food, music and   
  
fireworks. Your Oka-san and Father will be there, and Father will cry, for he always does. You'll   
  
meet Teng and the Chi Guardians. Don't worry, they might look scary with those tattoos and all,   
  
but they're quite friendly. Your Auntie Lu will get so drunk, the servants will have to fish her out   
  
of the pond......again. Just watch out for Xiao, he's got a habit of blowing out other people's   
  
birthday candles whether ou invite him too or not. When I was young, I always hated it when he   
  
did that,"  
  
Its true, I did hate it when Xiao did that. I continued.  
  
"I think the only good thing that shendu ever did in his life was being born for the sole purpose of   
  
allowing us to throw him a One Year celebration,"  
  
I scratch the place behind Hsi's spikes, he purrs lightly.  
  
"You don't really understand the complexities of life, do you?"  
  
Hsi cooes.  
  
"I thought not. Do you realize how lucky you are?  
  
Hsi blows a spit bubble.  
  
"I see,"  
......................................  
  
Has it really been four months since that day when I hid behind the screen in the main court?   
  
Hsi's One Year celebration is tomorrow. He's grown so much in the past few months, I'd hardly   
  
guess he was the same, fragile being that looked up at me with bright, grey eyes almost a year   
  
ago. He is able to walk completely upright without any difficulty, thanks to his demon half.   
  
Again, I find myself in the library. I am truly a creature of habit, am I not? I sit in dark seclusion   
  
for hours, burning incense, reading. I am currently studying a western book about the island of   
  
Atlantis, quite fascinating. My lotus blossom sits on my desk in its box that I bought on a trip to   
  
the marketplace with Rumiko-hime and Hsi. I hear the door of the library creak open. A single   
  
shaft of light pollutes my blessed darkness. I close the lid of my box, sheltering my lotus from   
  
anything that may come through the door.   
  
"Are you ready yet, Tso?"  
  
Bai's sharp voice pierces the air like a dagger. She's become quite commanding as of late, I   
  
admire her for it. I also find it hard to believe that almost two years ago, she was going through   
  
an incredibly annoying phase of "politeness". Everything changes over time, many of us do not   
  
realize how much we change until we step back and look for ourselves and then it is often too late   
  
to defend oneself from fate's unrelenting onslaught.  
  
"Yes, Bai, I'll be along shortly,"  
  
Bai's luminiscent eyes narrow sharply and she closes the door of the library rather hard. She's   
  
rather edgy today, even I admit it. But nowhere near as unbearable as Lu Song. I am glad I am   
  
able to retreat into my sanctuary. Po Kong has apparently been fairly successful in her   
  
attempts at conquering land in Japan. I never doubted her. With her bulk alone, I'm sure my   
  
sister could crush entire armies. In any case, Lu has become agitated, to say the least and has   
  
begun to nag on everyone, even Hsi Wu.  
  
"Why don't you fly yet, boy?" she had demmanded of him yesterday. Of course, I know she was   
  
quite unaware of anything she did yesterday. She hasn't stopped drinking since Po left, I fear   
  
there is nothing left of her liver, if she has one. She's been a constant bother to the Chi   
  
Guardians, going so far as to making the youngest, Toki, cry. Toki of course complained to   
  
Virgo, who complained to Teng, who brought it to the attention of Father who has banned Lu from   
  
all alchohol for twwenty-four hours. Now, we do not only have an agitated demoness on our   
  
hands, we have one which is also in the throes of alchohol withdrawal. She accused me of being   
  
part Kiang-shi when I asked her what she did to make Toki so upset. These are her exact words:  
  
"She shouldn't be so damned sensitive........And what about you? Lock yourself in that library for   
  
hours in the dark. Why, if it wasn't for your eyes, I'd have thought Rei cheated on Marl with a   
  
Kiang-shi,"  
  
If she had not been father's wife, she would have found herself sprawled flat on the ground.   
  
Had she not been father's wife, I would have slapped her. I am defensive of my mother, as I am   
  
of Bai, Hsi and Rumiko-hime. Then I remember that Lu is not herself, the hangover effect of   
  
drinking so much must be astronomical. I'd wager her head throbs more than mine.  
  
I get up and head to the main garden, where guests are begining to arrive for tomorrow's   
  
celebration. See, the presentation of a demon child is a great event in our world. The closest   
  
thing I can compare it to is a baptism and a coronation combined. It is the first time a child is   
  
brought to the temple. There, the parents introduce their child to the temple master as well as   
  
any Chi Guardians. Then many beings make speeches, prayers, burn incense, candles and   
  
perform traditional dances of good fortune. It is as much a political event as it is religious.   
  
Naturally, a great number of Western Demons, Chi Beasts, Chi Guardians, and various other   
  
beings, even a small number of human nobles.   
  
The garden is alive with flowers and waterfalls. Koi fish swim elegantly below the surface of the   
  
pond. everyone is gathered, fairly presentable. I notice that Rumiko-hime is holding Hsi, who   
  
looks as though he'd rather be doing something else. Teng is speaking with father, Bai is speaking   
  
with Toki. I feel a breeze rustle my long, black hair. I look up to see the pale gold dragon from   
  
the earlier meeting, red mane, gold medallion and all, soaring overhead. As smooth as a slippery   
  
serpent, it glides down and lands at Rumiko-hime's feet. I see now that it has two passengers on   
  
its back. The first is a Chi Guardian, a female, the second is also a female Chi Guardian, except   
  
this one is a child who seems very familiar. They get off of the dragon's back and the adult Chi   
  
Guardian bows before Rumiko-hime. Rumiko-hime's eyes widen in amazement, Hsi stares at the   
  
peculiar woman with his questioning eyes. The Chi Guardian speaks:  
  
"My lady, Rumiko-hime, it is truly wonderful to see you alive. When our state was destroyed, we   
  
feared the worst. Our hearts are joyous to find that you are alright, as well as happily married   
  
and a loving mother. Your humble servant, Yuishi is thankful that you have escaped a terrible   
  
fate,"  
  
"Yuishi? My childhood friend? Is it really you?" Rumiko-hime's eyes tear up. She rushes forward   
  
and embraces her friend. Hsi looks rather uncomfortable between the two.  
  
"Rumiko-hime......this must be your son? How wonderful! This is my daughter, Hikari. we are the   
  
sole survivors of the temple in your father's palace,"  
  
A hush descends upon the assembled, the Chi Guardian child buries her face in the dragon's red   
  
mane. His taloned hand rests on her back and he whispers soft, comforting words in a language   
  
that I do not understand. The child is still eerily familiar. I stare at her, trying to place where I   
  
have seen her before. The red maned dragon notices this, he stares at me and I see that his   
  
eyes do not have whites, well, he does, but the white part of them is an off white almost yellow,   
  
his irises are still piercing green. His eyes are haunting. I shake my head and return my gaze to   
  
the child. As the realization hits me, I hang onto a nearby tree to steady myself. The child is the   
  
girl from my vision, the one choked by a being from the shadows. The one who said "mama" as   
  
she looked her attacker in the face. The girl has come with her mother and I wonder if our doom   
  
is not far behind.  
End Chapter 9 


	10. Aqua Meaning

Special points go to Asher Tye for noticing how I'm writing this! Other points go to my regular readers, Spleef and Tajeri Lynn for continuing to read and review, Thanks! Oh, this fic is NOWHERE near being over, yes, the demons will turn bad, but I plan on putting them through hell first, so you can see WHY they're so bent on destruction (Well, mostly Tso).  
Disclaimer: I don't own JCA, but I do own a talking spider-man plush.  
  
Chapter 10 Aqua Meaning   
  
  
The party proceeds the next day. I tell no one of the girl's connection to my vision. The   
  
surrealness of the celebration is maddening. It is like the old days, when there was no phantom   
  
threat, when there were only seven children and all were accounted for. Everyone sat still, even   
  
Shendu, a first for him (however, I believe it had something to do woith the pale gold dragon who   
  
kept raising his eyebrows at Syra every time she looked at him. In order to avoid such   
  
occurences, she kept a closer eye on Shendu than usual, much to his horror and my delight). Hsi   
  
Wu is enamoured with his surroundings, all the excitement and motion. It is evening now, the   
  
hanging lanterns are lit, music plays and everyone chats mindlessly about their lives. Even Rune,   
  
the sternest of the three Chi Guardians is enjoying herself. She swirls a large class of wine as   
  
she speaks with Mother. Syra is speaking with Lu, who is pleasantly enjoying her first sip of rice   
  
wine in a whole twenty four hours. It is then that I notice the red maned dragon sneak up behind   
  
Syra Seo. He looks in another direction as he drops a few small coins on the ground. He cranes   
  
his neck down to retrieve them, while at the same time, peeking under her tail. I haven't seen   
  
this form of peeping before in person ,though I have heard Lu Song often speak of it. She claims   
  
that is how she and father met, she caught him doing something similar. She called him a   
  
pervert, he called her uptight, she called him rude, he called her gorgeous and the rest, well, I'd   
  
rather not know.  
  
I notice that Lu sees what the male dragon is up to, she smiles slightly, but does not alert Syra   
  
of the situation, I imagine she'd say something like "Why spoil something so hilarious?"   
  
Finished with the episode, I move off in another direction.   
  
...........  
  
I find myself alone on the edge of the party, enveloped in the darkness that is my closest   
  
companion. The sounds of gaity are far off, butI can still hear them. Such is the way I desire to   
  
live, still within range of happiness, but In m own private space. I inhale deeply and look up at he   
  
moon, brught, glorious and full. A firework explodes, momentarily illuminationg me with particles   
  
of red light. Another flow of images enters my mind, once again unbidden. The evil blues and   
  
purples of Dark Chi mist envelope everything, death hangs heavy in the air. The markings on   
  
countless Chi warriors change first to electric blue, then grey, as does the rest of their skin.   
  
Rumiko-hime stands with a sword raised, glowing with heavenly light, before Hsi and a young girl   
  
who I do not recognize, but Hsi looks so much older......The red maned dragon stands with his two   
  
compatriots, the red eyed dragon and the orange eyed dragon, the Three Chi Beasts. Snakelike   
  
tentacles of Dark Chi Wrap around them, slicing at their skin and attempting to force themselves   
  
into the beasts mouths. The two dark colored dragons surrender quickly and appear to embrace   
  
the dark power being pumped into the heart of their souls, sucking on the tentacles with a   
  
perverse vigor while their friend struggles against the evil. The red maned dragon spews green   
  
Chi energy at the tentacles, but to no avail. They simply bind his mouth shut and abandon trying   
  
to force their way into his. It fights, wrenching its snakelike body in painful arcs trying to   
  
escape. The tentacles dig farther into its pale flesh with every move. It lays in its own blood,   
  
every few moments giving a pain wracked twitch, still fighting. A phantom voice echoes in my   
  
mind.  
  
"Why do you not simply give up?" The piercing green eyes of the pale dragon burst open with a   
  
murderous glare.   
  
And I am back in the garden.  
  
And I am not alone.   
  
It appears that the tree that I have been leaning on has an occupant, sitting upon a branch a few   
  
feet above me is the young Chi Guardian, Hikari.  
  
"Hikari, wasn't it?" I ask, attempting to be civil and courteous.  
  
Her brilliant eyes burn into my soul  
  
"You're from Rumiko-hime's state? How was it destroyed?"   
  
I instantly regret asking, I should not have asked a child to tell me about the masacre of   
  
thousands, as is my understanding of the events. But the girl answers without hesitation.  
  
"The Dark Chi man came and poisened the Chi, everyone in our shrine tried to stop him, even my   
  
dad. But he changed them so they wouldn't stop him. He brought an army of beings that were   
  
shadows with glowing red eyes. I was scared, my mom hid me. I didn't see anything, but Dad, he   
  
came to get me. He sent me off with the Chi Beast, the red maned dragon. I saw the Dark CHi   
  
tentacle go through his chest, Mom and I are alone now. But not really, for the Chi Beast is   
  
always with us. He told me that since we are both redheads, we're "simpatico", or some such   
  
thing,"  
  
My throat tightens, that such a young child should have witnessed their own parent's   
  
destruction. I need to ask:  
  
"Hikari, was the man with the Dark Chi, human?"  
  
"Yes," she answers.  
  
Something all to predictable, I tire of these human fools. They toil with forces they do not   
  
comprehend for their own gain. I decide to change the subject.  
  
"Hikari? What do your tattoos mean?"  
  
"Tattoos?" she asks.  
  
"Yes, I've noticed that all Chi Guardians have green tattoos all over their bodies. I have often   
  
wondered what they meant but was always embarassed to ask. I was unable to find the reason in   
  
any book I have read," close enough to the truth.  
  
She seems to accept it as a legitimate question.  
  
"Oh, you mean these," she points to a trail of characters on he rarm.  
  
"Yes," I say.  
  
"They're Chi markings. See Chi Guardians are eighty-percent Chi. When we're born, we get these   
  
marks on us so the Chi will flow into them and take on the meaning of whatever the tattoos say,"   
  
"What do yours say?" I ask.  
  
"This one says "Dark Shield", it protects me from Dark Chi," she says, tracing her finger along   
  
her ankle.  
  
"This one, says "Chi Scythe"," its the one on her arm.  
  
"The ones on my cheeks are just decorations, but my Chi Eye is on my forhead. It is turned off   
  
now, so you can't see it,"  
  
"Ahh, that's right. All Chi Guardians have Chi Eyes. Only three humans have them at a time,"  
  
"I know. Your Temple priestess, Teng has one,"  
  
"That's right,"  
  
"I like Teng,"  
  
"Hikari?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Are Chi Guardians tattoos always green?"  
  
"Well, of course,"  
  
"Oh,"  
  
"But wait," she seems to have remembered something.  
  
Hikari's eyes move back and forth with fervor.  
  
Her voice is shaky at first.  
  
"Wait......when the tentacle went into my dad, his changed colors. They......they were."  
  
My heart begins to pound, for I know what she is about to say.  
  
"......blue. Brilliant blue. Then they turned grey and the rest of him did too, and his eyes were   
  
glowing red. He turned into one of those things that invaded,"  
  
So that is the Dark Chi wizard's game. Conquer through assimilation.  
  
"The Dark Chi Wizard went away though. Marl Kung fought him and saved a few of the villages,"  
  
I reflect on this for a moment. That must have been when he met Rumiko-hime. Hsi Wu, my   
  
brother, would never have been born if this did not happen. In the most bizarre way, I'm glad it   
  
did.  
  
A shrill scream shatters the relative quiet of the place. I feel an enormous surge of heat grace   
  
my neck. I turn around to see the entire garden illuminated by a titanic fireball. I feel a breeze   
  
overhead, I look up to see the pale gold dragon fleeing into the darkness, a smug look on his face.   
  
I turn back to the party, Hikari looks as well.  
  
It appears that after sometime, Syra finally noticed her intruder and her reaction   
  
was.....explosive. She is still fuming enormous plumes of fire as she snorts out countless curses.  
  
Meanwhle, Lu song is rolling on the ground, wracked with laughter.  
  
"You..you didn't even nocitce, Syra! He was.........there for almost a quarter of an hour and you   
  
didn't even notice! Admit it, you coy little geisha, you liked it!" Lu manages to say as she laughs.  
  
Syra turns her rage on her aquaintance.  
  
"You...you bitch, Lu! What did you call me? The nerve! And......wait....you knew he was there? And   
  
you didn't tell me! GRRRRRRRRR!"  
  
Syra leapt onto Lu and began to maul her. Still laughing, Lu fights back. The two demonesses   
  
are caught in a match of fire, claws and teeth. They wrestle one another savagely for several   
  
minutes. I notice that Lu has a wicked gleam in her eyes. She grasps Syra's serpentine body in   
  
her arms and rolls the both of them into the pond, extinguishing Syra's flame and leaving her a   
  
dripping, soaking mess. Syra snorts angrily and stalks off. She passes Shendu, who is laughing   
  
uncontrollably. Enraged, she slaps him to the ground. He whimpers and runs in the opposite   
  
direction.  
  
And so ends Hsi Wu's One Year Celebration.  
  
I sigh as I imagine what tomorrow will bring.  
  
End Chapter 10 


	11. Fly

Whoa! Way past time for an update! I've had a bunch of college stuff to do, most of which I am finished with and am now able to update LM! YAY! LiL may get an update soon too, but this story is tickling my muse's fancy as of late. Okay! You've all been patient, so let's have a go!  
One little note from Chibi: If the movie Spirited Away (NOT Swept Away, Spirited) comes to your town, GO See IT! It is incredible!  
  
Disclaimer-I don't own JCA, but I do own a huge plush of the Creature from the Black Lagoon, something about Universal Monsters is just so appealing!  
  
Chapter 11-Fly  
  
Ten times the seasons have come and gone, fading to the winds. Incredible, is it not? The   
  
passage of time. Of course, nothing much changes around here, a matter for which I am very   
  
grateful. Those from the West, who visited us so long ago, have never returned. I know not   
  
what happened to them, or the Chi dragon who fled from Syra's rage. Sometimes, it all seems as   
  
though it were a dream. But on occasion, the air still feels dead. There are more and more   
  
creatures in our forests now, they seem to appear from nowhere. Variations of deer and wolf   
  
that have never been seen here before. Their abundant Chi clouds my perception of Chi from the   
  
outside, I wonder what is happening.  
  
It is summer now, I sit at the base of a great, wide tree in a garden near the temple. The birds   
  
chirp in the tree above m head, despite my usual pounding headache, I enjoy them. They have no   
  
idea of the complexities of the world, these simple creatures. They simply flit about, singing and   
  
avoiding the hawks which reside in the forest side of father's estate. I hear a new sound which   
  
has become all to familiar as of late. The sound of talons digging into bark, time and time again   
  
and the inevitable dragging sound. It is coming from the opposite side of the tree. I smile to   
  
myself.  
  
I Iean against the hard trunk of the tree and sigh. I squint as a ray of sunlight burns into my   
  
sensitive vision. I curse silently as my eyes comes alive with pain. It passes momentarily.   
  
The drag of a large object down the slick trunk of the tree, followed by the youthful, but   
  
scratchy voice of my little brother:  
  
"Damn it!"  
  
I click my tongue at him, scoldingly.  
  
"Hsi, what a foul mouth for someone your age," I tease him.   
  
Hsi Wu sinks his talons into the trunk and climbs over to my side. He is still rather small, by any   
  
standard, human or demon. his enormous red eyes burn into me from his position a few feet   
  
above me. He allows his claws to release the bark and he sides down, making the distinct slipping   
  
noise, until we are at eyes level.  
  
"Auntie Lu has an even fouler one," he says with a wicked smile.  
  
"Indeed," I answer in my own characteristic monotone. I briefly remember her confrontation with   
  
little Aku's father during a happier time, before the dead air, before the visions, when we could all   
  
just be...... I shake my head to clear my thoughts...or peraps to shake off a premonition.  
  
"What is she, anyway?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Auntie Lu, what is she? Auntie Rei is a succubus, Auntie Syra is a dragon, what is Auntie Lu?"  
  
"Nobody knows,"  
  
"Why not? Its kinda important,"  
  
"Yes, I suppose it is, but she has never seen the need to discuss it,"  
  
"Knowing what you are is important,"  
  
"I suppose. Why this sudden interest in what everything is, Hsi?"  
  
No answer. Hsi Wu's youthful and jovial face sombers, he returns to climbing the tree.  
  
Trouble. Something happened and he didn't want it to slip, but it did.  
  
"Hsi, what happened?"  
  
"Nothing," He sinks his talons into the tree savagely and pulls himself upward.  
  
Honestly, how often does answering "nothing" end a conversation?  
  
"I don't believe you, Hsi, you are a horrible liar,"  
  
He still refuses to answer, becoming more and more determined to reach a large branch a foot   
  
away from him.  
  
"Hsi Wu, you can tell me. Come on, what's bothering you?"  
  
Hsi Wu reached the branch and now sits with his legs hanging over it.  
  
He opens his mouth to answer, apparently giving in, but he suddenly shouts something else.  
  
"Oka-san!" Hsi Wu calls out from his high perch, no longer looking at me.  
  
I turn around to find Rumiko-hime standing behind me. She looks so..so old. I can't describe it,   
  
it has only been ten years since I met her and yet, she looks so much older, so more mature than   
  
when she first arrived. She smiles at us serenely. She looks content in avery disturbing way, as   
  
though if she were to drop dead here and now, she would go in peace. I shake a shiver off my   
  
spine.  
  
"Oka-san! Watch me!" Hsi Wu shouts down to her.  
  
I look up at him and my breathe catches in my throat. How on earth did he get so high? Hsi Wu   
  
stands, somewhat unsteadily on a high branch, a fall could kill even a full blooded demon his age,   
  
especially from that height.   
  
"Hsi Wu-" nI shout, but Rumiko-hime cuts me off with a discreet iShhhhh!/i  
  
"Let him do it Tso," she whispers almost inaudibly, "Let him fly,"  
  
"Fly?" I should have known, apparently, Bai is not the only sibling who keeps secrets from me.  
  
Hsi Wu stands uneasily for a moment before leaping into the air, eyes closed. For a brief   
  
moment, he falls. Rumiko-hime runs mmediately to the the place where she believes he will fall,   
  
her terror stricken eyes widen and her proud smile changes to a look of agony and anxiety. Hsi's   
  
red eyes snap open and a wicked grin crosses his dark features. He gives his wings a powerful   
  
flap and sails high into the sky. He turns a few exaggerated loops before cruising back to us and   
  
landing gently in Rumiko-hime's outstretched arms. She clutches him too her tightly, I see her   
  
shoulders rising and falling and I hear her make small squeaks. She's crying and poor Hsi doesn't   
  
even notice.  
  
"Oka-san! did you see me? I finally did it, Oka-san! Oka-san?Oka-" He sees her eyes squeezed   
  
closed andher hot tears fall on his face.  
  
"Oh Hsi, Don't. Don't scare me like that. For a moment, I thought you were going to fall.   
  
Kami-sama! I don't know what I'd do if I ever lost you! You're all I have left, don't you understand   
  
that? You're allI have!"  
  
I have the strange feeling that I should leave, I don't belong here with this poor woman who has   
  
seen more horrors than I can imagine, I don't belong here, watching Hsi, who flew so carefree   
  
moments ago to be scolded for something he didn't realize would hurt his mother so much. Hsi's   
  
luminous eyes reflect one of the deepest senses of regret that I have ever seen.  
  
"Oka-san? Are you okay?" Hsi asks delicately, brushing a wet lock of Rumiko-hime's hair out of   
  
her eyes with his large claw.  
  
"After everything was gone, I was alone. I was alone, trapped for so long. Then Marl, he he came   
  
back and found me. He saved me, healed me, protected me. I was with him, but then I was alone   
  
again, then you came and I wasn't alone anymore. Everyone here is wonderful, Rei, Lu, Teng, Tso   
  
and Bai, they're all so good to me, but you're the only Hirrubara left. Don't ever let anyone tell   
  
you they're better than you. the things that those children said today-don't listen! You are Hsi   
  
Wu, son of Marl Kung, the Demon Lord and Hirrubara Rumiko! You are destined to be a great   
  
Demon Sorceror! Don't let anything anyone ever says convince you otherwise!"  
  
Whether her ramblings made any sense to Hsi, I cannot say, but I understand. It all makes   
  
sense now. Hsi Wu must have accompanied Rumiko-hime to town as he frequently does. He must   
  
have attempted to socialize with other children his own age...with less than desirable results. I   
  
notice a purplish bruise on the back of his head. I tense, omething akin to hatred burns inside of   
  
me. I clench both my right fists so tightly that they shake. I feel a strange power building up   
  
inside of me. I don't care. Part of me wants to crush those impertenant fools, the side of me   
  
that wants to slap Lu Song for her insulting comments about my mother, the same side that   
  
wants to shatter Tchang Tzu's skull for everything he's done to Hsi over the years. The tripping,   
  
the teasing, the beating, the insults, all recount themselves in my mind. Oddly enough the color   
  
that I see when I am enraged is not red, but dark purple. I am brought out of my blind rage by a   
  
large Feng Shui dog statue that once was perched on the roof behind me, come slamming down to   
  
the ground inches from my right foot and breaks into several large pieces. Rumiko-hime dives,   
  
clutching Hsi to her and rolling aside.   
  
  
They look up at me, both breathing deeply. I stammer, but can think of nothing to say. I'm not   
  
entirely sure what happened. I feel a warm hand on my shoulder. I turn sharply, rather terrified   
  
myself. It's Teng Marzipan carrying a Chi staff, Chi eye activated and all.  
  
"Tso Lan," she says smiling, "I think you should come with me to the temple,"  
  
She squeezes my shoulder and bows to Rumiko-hime.  
  
"Pardon me, Milady, but I need to borrow Master Tso if you do not mind,"  
  
Rumiko-hime nods, somewha dazed. Teng simply smiles eerily back at her.  
  
"Thank You. Tso, shall we go?"  
  
I feel myself being led away. I am at once stupified and confused, these feelings are alin to me.   
  
Teng walks me back the secluded temple that lies behind the countless bungalows and gardens   
  
within the palace walls. Together, we begin to ascend the stairs.   
  
End Chapter 12 


	12. Teng Marzipan

Whew! another chapter is coming out of my head and into yours, lol. I'm very glad that LM has a new following. ((^_^)) Welcome aboard, VampireNaomi and a very special welcome to The Joker of Wonderland, who has sent me a piece of gorgeous fanart and has left wonderful comments in reviews. Thank You so much! I appreciate everything! I am very honored to have inspired somebody. ((~_*)) Read her story, The Demon of the Lily, I promise its well worth your while. Tso Lan has romanitc action and I love it!  
Welcome back, spinkie! I'm glad you like it!  
You know what? I don't own JCA, Tso Lan or Hsi Wu, but Teng is mine! so are the Chi Guardians, Hikari and , heh, Auriel Von Finntorn ( he's shown up before, he has just been unamed). My Skeletor action figure is mine, too. Bad asses rule!  
  
Chapter 12- Teng Marzipan  
  
I sit opposite Teng at a floor table. My lower arms fidget with themselves as my eyes glance   
  
nervously around the room. Teng hums softly to herself as she pours us each a cup of tea from   
  
the round, stout pot that Toki brought us. I feel out of place here. I rarely come to the temple,   
  
finding my spiritual solace in the solitude of the library. I should have come more often, guilt   
  
pulls at my mind. The place is silent in a way which reflects great power. Far off, Toki sings a   
  
hymn, the words reach my ears, though I cannot make many of them out, for they are in a   
  
language that I have not heard spoken for years. Not since the Western Demon Lord came.  
  
"Tso Lan,"  
  
I jump at Teng's sudden mention of my name. Her deep violet pools delve deep into my soul,   
  
contradicting her benign smile.  
  
"Y-Yes?" I manage finally.  
  
"How long have you been having these.....episodes?"  
  
"Episodes, Madame Marzipan?"  
  
"Call me Teng, Everyone else in your family does,"  
  
"I am not like the rest of my family,"  
  
Teng looks up from the teacup that she has lifted to her lips. A clever smile crosses her face,   
  
that is the second time today that I have seen that smile. The first was from a certain half   
  
demon who almost gave his mother a mental breakdown.  
  
"No, I suppose you're not, but you are Rei's son, so it is not surprising. You are avoiding my   
  
question, Lord Tso Lan. Tell me, how long have things seemed to come down around you?" Teng   
  
asks in her smooth voice. Her eyes narrow and her Chi eye glows intently in the center of her   
  
forehead, its green light casting a lime shadow over the table.  
  
"For as long as I can remember, at least since before father married Rumiko-hime," I answer   
  
truthfully, no sense or reason for hiding the truth from Teng.  
  
"I see, any unusual physical ailments?" she inquires even further. I notice that she is writing on a   
  
tablet on her lap. Broad brush strokes and ebony ink leave characters behind.  
  
"I've been getting headaches for almost a decade, worse than migraines,"  
  
"And you never told anyone? Never came to me? I sensed there was something wrong with you,   
  
but you hid it from me. You suffered for so long when there might have been an herbal remedy   
  
or spell that I could have done for you?'  
  
"I didn't want to get in the way,"  
  
"Tso Lan, you are a horrible liar,"  
  
My breathe catches, the familiarity of those words is haunting. I swallow deeply.  
  
"Teng, I-I'm not supposed to tell anyone..."  
  
"Then don't," she says, sipping calmly, eyes downcast, but her Chi eye pattern never looks away.  
  
'What?" her interuption is jarring.  
  
"Don't tell me more than you feel comforable telling me. I won't force you to tell me and I won't   
  
probe your Chi. Just tell me what you want to,"  
  
"Alright.....I have a strong aversion to bright light. I often read in total darkness. I don't   
  
understand why or how,'  
  
  
"I think I understand, Tso,"  
  
"You under..."  
  
"Yes, its simple,"   
  
Teng never looks at me, but her voice tells me she can see inside my very soul.  
  
"Teng, please tell me what's wrong with me, if you do in fact know,"  
  
She suddenly laughs, almost snorting her tea in the process. I narrow an eye at her, such   
  
behavior is highly unlike the clever, refined Teng whom I have known since I was young. Shec   
  
ollects herself and apologizes, still giving an occasional chuckle.  
  
"Teng!" Her ambiguity is intolerable. I reach across the table suddenly and grab her shoulders   
  
with my upper arms and hold her firmly. I let out a gasp, never before have I acted so rashly...so   
  
demonic. Power thuds in my ears and my heart panics. I release her immediately, I apologize   
  
profusely and wring my lower hands.  
  
She looks up at me with narrowed violet eyes, a smile of knowing graces her porcelain features.   
  
"Do not be sorry for what is in your nature, Tso. Demons are naturally agressive, its alright. Its   
  
normal to give in to what your instincts are telling you on occasion,"  
  
"No! Its not! I don't know what happened1 I'm sorry Teng! I didn't mean to do it! I just...something   
  
came over me and I.."  
  
"Like the time in the market with Lady Rumiko, before Hsi was born," Teng ays plainly.  
  
"How did you know that?" I ask.  
  
"Rumiko told me of course,"  
  
"You two are close then?"  
  
"Very,"  
  
"I cannot understand how huans become so attatched to ne another in such a short amount of   
  
time. Most demons take at least fifty years to even form friendships with someone outside of   
  
the family,"  
  
"Tso Lan, I believe that humans form bonds quickly because we do not have the amount of time   
  
alotted to us that you demons do. We must seek companionship in the short time we are given.   
  
I'll agree with you that it is a short time, but its all we have and we must make the most of it   
  
while we can. Time is a gift that too many demons have forgotten, they consider themselves   
  
immortal. They grow selfish, careless and arrogant,"  
  
"I'm sorry I have distracted you Teng, but could you please, please tell me what's happening to   
  
me,"  
  
Teng's eyes widen enormously and she looks at me with an expression of awe and pity.  
  
"There is nothing wrong with you first and foremost, Tso Lan. I'm sorry I laughed before, but I   
  
thought for sure you would know, what with all he books you've been reading, what was happening   
  
to you. The idea of you being so oblivious was quite ludicrous,"  
  
"Then.....,"  
  
"You're growing up Tso Lan, you're powers are manifesting themselves. Its nothing to be worried   
  
or upset about. Its natural, I'm just surprised that it took so long to complete. Normal demon   
  
adolesence takes roughly eight years, but yours has been lagging a bit. Oh well, nothing to worry   
  
about, just try to keep your temper under control until they have completely formed, alright? We   
  
don't need any more airborne statuary,"  
  
Teng's violet eyes light up mischeviously.  
  
"Alright Teng,"  
  
"I'm glad to see that you at least pretend to obey your spiritual advisor, very few of the others   
  
do,"  
  
"Thank You,"   
  
I tap the knees of my crossed legs with my lower arms. I sigh, a question that has plagued me   
  
for years presents itself once more. I decide to finally garner the courage to make a rather   
  
personal inquiry.  
  
"Teng, why do you dress and act the way you do?"  
  
Silence, she appears frozen momentarily, the tea she was pouring overflows from her cup. She   
  
snaps almost instantly out of her trancelike state and uses the sleeve of her robe to wipe up the   
  
spilled tea. It is not something a normal priestess would do, but this is Teng Marzipan. She   
  
finishes and looks up at me. There is a melancholy in her eyes, but her voice does not betray it.  
  
"A fair question, Tso Lan. One, I sense, that has burned within you for years. There is one other   
  
besides me who knows where I came from, but only I myself know why I am the way I am. But is it   
  
not the indvidual who can explain their actions for what they truly are? No one else understands,   
  
or could hope to. For the individual, the answer exists in oneself, in their past experiences. Life   
  
is a learning experience, if we do not learn from what we see, how will we continue to live?"  
  
"I don't know," I answer. I am entirely perplexed at this response, I have no idea where she is   
  
going with her expalanation, I am not even entirely clear of what she means by it all. I have a   
  
sudden feeling that I do not want to hear her story.  
  
"It is alright, Tso Lan. My tale has gone untold for so long, I believe I have forgotten much of it,"  
  
She sensed my agitated Chi, her Chi eye is that sensitive? Amazing.  
  
"I was born in the land to the West of your father's kingdom, not so far as the Western Woods,   
  
home of the Demon Lord Isthral, but somewhere nestled between here and there. I lived in a   
  
small fishing village with my family, my father and my brother. My mother had dies when I was an   
  
infant, of a strange plague which ravaged the village. It coated the land, air and water in a dark   
  
wave and polluted the hearts and minds of the villagers. Some died, they were fortunate. Those   
  
who did not die became shadows of the beings that they once were. It infected and poisoned the   
  
souls of my brother and father, so that they sold my two older sisters to a brothel in the   
  
neighboring town. Love and family ties were forgotten, I was not to share that fate,, for I was   
  
still a mere babe, motherless, now sisterless and trapped in a world enshrouded in darkness. I   
  
could feel it Tso, I could feel it picking at me, poking and prodding into my being, trying to find a   
  
place it could ooze its vile self into me and convert all that was in me to misery and death in life.   
  
But something potected me then, I didn't realize it, for I was too small, but the Chi Eye protecte   
  
dme from the shadows, from whatever dark being was laying seige to my home. Around that   
  
time, it began to materialize itself, ever so often, it would come to glorious illuminated life. When   
  
I was five, I heard my father whispering to my brother that if the Eye remained on my forhead, I   
  
wouldn't be worth anything. I was wise beyond my years and realized that the way of insuring my   
  
freedom was to always leave my Chi Eye activated. There was talk of course, that I was   
  
posessed, or a demon myself, but I ignored their harsh comments and turned them into flattery,   
  
the more I was not like the average girl, the less chance I would have to share my poor sisters   
  
miserable fate. I began taking my brother's old clothes and tailoring them to fit me. I taught   
  
myself to read, going for days without sleep, for I could only study at night. I read by the light of   
  
my Chi Eye. My powers matured much faster than most other Chi Seers because I used mine so   
  
much. When I turned nine, my father decided to sell me anyway, covering my Eye with a   
  
makeshift bandage, though the green glow shone through it. I sruggled and cried and begged. I   
  
pounded him with my small, childish hands, demanding to know why he had forsaken me, what I   
  
had done to deserve such a horrible future. He never answered. Whether he would not, or   
  
whether the darkness had eaten at him so long, that he was unable to say why, even o himself.   
  
As he carried me down the street, thrown over his shoulder, I felt something that I had not felt in   
  
years, since my sisters were taken away. Good Chi. My Chi Eye took over my vision and I saw a   
  
bright green silhouette at our neighbor's door. I did not care who it belonged to, this was the   
  
outline of my sole hope for survival. I cried out to it, the warm green light turned in my direction,   
  
red eyes shone through the lime green glow. I felt warm, safe and loved in that Chi. It stood out   
  
like a beacon to me, after years of being surrounded by shades of blue and purple whenever I use   
  
dmy Chi eye, the joy at finding another uncontaminated soul was indescribable. The stranger's   
  
voice seemed muffled to me, he was talking to father. I reached for that voice, so deep, it   
  
vibrated my bones. Their words became clearer. Father wa sexplaining what he was going to do   
  
with me. I kept reaching for the green light. I heard him make an offer to father, he would pay   
  
him twice what he had gotten for both my sisters combined, as well as a bolt of fine silk if he   
  
would be allowed to take me away from the village that very day and to his kingdom in the East. I   
  
remember of the joy I felt when my father agreed. I would be free of that horrible place, that   
  
neverending darkness. The stranger picked me up, taking me from father. I still had not   
  
surrendered to my normal vision, all I saw was green light. I felt leathery skin and taloned hands   
  
lift me gently. They were so strong, yet they were gentle with me, as if I were made of china and   
  
they were afraid to break me. I began to cry with joy, the strong hands held me close to a   
  
beating heart and the body was so soft, so warm. I closed my eyes and snuggled up to it, the last   
  
thing I felt before falling asleep was being whisked skyward, away from the haze of Dark Chi and   
  
into the sky, where light shone and the air was filled with small blips of green Chi. I didn't care   
  
where I was going or who I was with, but it didn't matter. I was going away from that awful place   
  
and that was all that mattered,"  
  
"It was father, wasn't it?" I ask, my throat tight from haring such an honest confession from   
  
someone who had kept so much pain inside her for so long. I feel honored and sadened by th tale,   
  
she told me the story of her life, no matter how tragic it was in the begining, I am grief stricken   
  
that someone so understanding and kind had to endure such suffering.  
  
"Yes, He understood the power of the Chi Eye and its usefulness. I found out later that he had   
  
been searching for me since a wayward Tengu had wandered into his kingdom rambling about me,"   
  
she finally answers, looking out the window into the garden where Hsi Wu and Hikari, the young Chi   
  
Guardian play.  
  
"You had better get going Tso, Rei will be worried about you, do tell her hello for me. I am sorry   
  
to have kept you so long,"  
  
She wants to be alone with her thoughts, I had best follow her advice.  
  
"Thank You Teng......for everything,"  
  
"It was nothing, I'm glad you came,"  
  
"I'll see ou again soon, I hope," I tell her, I am aware that it sounds horribly unrefined.   
  
"That would be wonderful, Lord Tso Lan." she bows low to me, smiles and exits the room, making   
  
her way to the temple sanctum.  
  
I sigh and leave. I hear Hsi and Hikari's laughter and I walk in their direction. They tumble   
  
together in the short grass. I smile, the're so happy, so young. Hikari has seen the world of   
  
darkness that Teng has and like Teng, has overcome her sorrows to live again. I am in awe.  
  
Hikari suddenly stops and grabs at her head. Hsi ceases play at once and approaches her on all   
  
fours carefully, one ear raised, the other flat against his head.  
  
"Auriel!" Hikari screams. She begins to sob, Chi Eye illuminated with a strange brilliance.  
  
"No, Mother, don't let Auriel go! Auriel, don't! They're going to hurt you! stab you! kill you! No   
  
Don't-Arrghhhhhhhh!" she shrieks and collapses on the ground, rolling aroun while clutching her   
  
head. The Chi marking for "Chi shield" becomes illuminated. Hsi moves to hake her, but his hand   
  
is burned by the field which becomes visible only as he touches it. He jerks away in pain and   
  
surprise.  
  
"Teng!" I shout."Toki! Virgo! Teng! Father! Anyone! Its Hikari!"  
  
The temple door slides open and Teng rushes out, followed by Virgo. Teng rushes to Hikari's   
  
side and kneels beside Hsi. She traces Chi characters in the air and manages to crack the field   
  
long enough to pick up the small Chi child.  
  
"Kami-sama, I've never seen one this bad before. Virgo, ready a bath,"  
  
Virgo lowers her head to Teng before rushing off.  
  
Hsi Wu looks up at his friend, both ears against the back of his head, eyes full of worry.   
  
"Teng, Who is Auriel?"  
  
"The golden Chi Beast, the red maned dragon. Why do you ask?" she answers as she gently   
  
rocks the perspiring and shaking child.  
  
"She began to cry out his name and her Chi Eye became extemely bright. I thought that it would   
  
be of assistance to you,"  
  
She looks at me fiercely.  
  
"It was Tso Lan, thank you. I suggest you take Lord Hsi Wu with you now and be on your way   
  
home,"  
  
"Yes, Teng," I pick up Hsi, who offers little resistance, too preoccupied with his companion's   
  
condition to contemplate the absurdity of a ten year old being carried like a sack of vegetables   
  
by his older brother. He watches Teng and Hikari until they are out of sight. He gives a little   
  
whimper, but that is all. When we reach our bungalow, Mother slides the door open before we   
  
reach it. Her bottom lip quivers and she hugs the two of us.  
  
"I...was..so scared," she whispers, silently sobbing into my robe.   
  
My heart pounds and all I can hear is screaming. My vision goes red, blood is everywhere, mixed   
  
with Chi ooze. Many have fallen. Teng is running. She comes to a wall and turns around. Her left   
  
hand is clutched over her left eye, deep, red blood pours from behind it. She breathes heavily,   
  
face contorted by a grimace of sheer hatred and betrayal. With her right hand, she summons a   
  
Chi staff and attacks her pursuers head on, screaming as she charges. There is a sickening   
  
squirt as her blade enters the first opponent. Blue liquid flows from her enemy as it sinks into its   
  
own shadow. There are at least ten of the strange beings around her. Clad in the black garb of   
  
the ninja, eyes ablaze like embers. She dispatches them all, Teng stands triumphant. Suddenly, a   
  
golden claw encircles her throat and squeezes. A hissing voice that I would recognize anywhere   
  
drifts through my mind:  
  
"Do you know how long I've waited for this? I plan on savoring this as long as I can, Human Filth,"  
  
Shendu. There is a period of silent gasps and grunts of desperation, even dull thuds of blows   
  
striking their targets. Until there is a sharp snap and then there is nothing. The golden claw   
  
releases its grip and the limp body of Teng Marzipan falls to the ground, her Chi Eye fades as her   
  
essence departs her body.   
  
I am back in my mother's arms, in the doorway of my home. I look up and see a moth flying into   
  
our lantern over and over again. Its tiny body beats against the paper, hoping to penetrate the   
  
barrier between itself and what it desires, but it does not realize that desire will lead to   
  
destruction. Poor ignorant insect, but the more I wonder, are we not like this simple creature?   
  
We long for our own happiness, unaware of what it even is. I stand there, unmoving as I hear the   
  
moth's futile attempts to bridge the gap between misery and happiness.  
  
End Chapter 12 


	13. Darkness

First things first. If you haven't heard by now, My JadeXHsi Wu shrine had an address update. Its url is different now! Check my user look up for the new one. Also, I apologize for any bizarre Os that appear. FF.net adds them, I don't know why. I don't type them!  
Dum Dum Dum! Its LM chapter 13!  
Gah! Where has the time gone? I just realized how long its been since I updated! Grrrr! alright! So, LM is back and rearing to go ( Ah, there's still so much that is going to happen *.*) What have I been doing, you ask? Writing a 91 page screenplay for college and other such things. So, here's LM, 13  
Disclaimer: I don't own JCA. If I did, Hsi Wu and Tso Lan would each have their own spin off. However, I do own a whole bunch of cheap, plastic Mardis Gras beads!  
  
Lotus Moon  
Chapter 13: Darkness  
Its dark. But then, it is always dark here. Dark and silent. This is the way that I like it. I lay here on my bed. Alone.  
In the dark.  
The door to the bungalow slides open.  
  
"Lord Tso Lan?"  
  
Another voice I do not know. I hear them more and more these days. It has been less than a month since I last reflected on my existence, but so much has changed. Perhaps that is why I like the darkness so much. It never changes. I glance up sharply at the strange Chi guardian who has interupted my solitude.  
  
"What do you want?" I more or less demmand in a vibrating monotone.  
  
"Sir, your presence is requested at once, in the main courtyard,"  
  
"Who requests my presence?"  
  
The Chi guadian swallows hard. His large green eyes look glassy. It appears that I have unerved him. This brings me an odd type of pleasure. I find this beings fear almost sensual, like it is natural. I give my head a slight shake to ward off such feelings. I refuse to become a devil. I am a demon, this I am proud of, but I will not allow myself to become the authoritarian tyrant that many of my ancestors were. I am better than that. I would sooner annihilate the world than rule it with an iron fist.  
  
I stand up.  
  
I am easily twice the size of this petty guardian. I don't see how he could defend the world against the forces that are massing. This is not my worry, though. I move past him, practically gliding across the floor. The Chi guardian does not follow me. Rather, he goes off towards Lu's Bungalow. I hear the door slide open, but there is a cry (from the chi guardian) and the sound of a shattering liquor bottle. Some things never change. The part of me that wants things to go back to the way things were before is comforted by this. The other half of me is disgusted.  
Why did things have to change for me? Why couldn't I stay the same? Your world can change in a month. Don't you dare doubt it, not even for an instant. Your life can change in a day! Damn all of you! Don't wyou wonder how I've become this way? I used to hope things would get better. That my visions were just visions, phantoms of things that would never come true. Then one came true. It was actually one of the more subtle ones. You see, that night when I came home from the temple? When I saw Teng dying in one of my visions and that damned moth would not leave the lantern be? Yes, that is the night my life changed forever. See, my mother died in my arms that night. I was just standing there. She was hugging me, then, suddenly, she wasn't. Her arms fell loose and she slumped into me. I never even got to say goodbye. She was just gone. Bai Tsa left the next day. She couldn't stand to be in this place any longer. Not with so many reminders...I can't blame her. Part of me wanted to run away like Bai, but the part of me that is responsible and hates the pain of being abandoned remains. Because, if I was gone, who would make sure Rumiko-hime and Hsi Wu were all right? I couldn't leave them. They were so hurt by mother's sudden death...I couldn't leave them. Not after what being left behind feels like. Why do demons have hearts that shatter so easily? Why can't we be the heartless, cruel creatures we are made out to be in legends? It would make life so much easier.   
Still, I stayed and watched over them. Father has never really recovered from Mother's death. Most say that she and Rumiko-hime were his favorite wives. But, he seemed afraid to share his pain with Rumiko, or anyone else. He withdrew from the world and concentrated on gathering the remaining Chi guardians to his side to prepare for the battle that he felt for certain was coming. I say he was drowining his pain. I can't drown mine. Its everywhere. You know? They never told me how mother died. They just said she died. Something about her heart. They would never go into detail. They would mention her hear tand then trail off and leave. I don't even know how my own mother died.  
That is why I am so cynical now. Darkness has consumed me. I am drunk on her touch. But now I must come forward and reveal myself to the world. Fine, at least I can find my way around without thinking of...her.  
I am content to be left to my own thoughts when I hear Shendu's whining voice within his and Syra's bungalow.  
  
"Mother, how much longer must we keep up this charade? I grow tired of that vile half breed's presence. When father is dead, I'll rip those ratty little wings right of his-"  
  
He doesn't get to finish.  
I hear a slap so loud it causes their wall to vibrate.  
There is no crying, only a low hiss from Shendu. I have to give him credit. However, this bizarre conversation has earned my interest. Syra is quick to supply me with more information.  
  
"Insolent child! How dare you say such a thing within these walls? One of those blasted Chi guardians could have heard you! You know how cozy they are with your father! A slip of the tongue could mean the slip of an axe on your neck! Is that what you want? Little fool! I cannot believe my offspring would have such a loose mouth. Oh, well. You do have some of your fathe rin you. What a shame. Do you have any idea of the disgusting, degrading things I went through to birth you? Sot hat you might become more powerful than your father ever could? With this alliance I have forged, you will not need Chi guardians or humans. You will have your own army, and they will not question you. They will be completely obedient. Now, go wipe that blood off your fac ebefore we go see your father,"  
There is a scuffling from within as he heads off.  
I cannot believe what I have just heard.  
What could this mean?  
Has Syra forged an allianc ethat will help us defeat out enemies?   
No.  
The feeling I have is terrible.  
It is pitch black.  
It is not the comforting darkness.  
Something horrible is about to transpire.  
And for the record, the moth broke through the lantern and burned alive in pursuit of happiness.  
END 13 


	14. Living Shadows

Lotus Moon Chapter 14 Thanks to Tajeri Lynn for reviewing again, as well as VampireNaomi and all the other faithfuls who will hopefully drift in! *.*;;;;;; Yeah. Ummmm...back to the fic, first of all, everythings going to get a lot more dark and angsty. characters you care about are going to die and haunt those who remain FOREVER MWAHAHAHAHAH! Errr...Chibi got a little overzealous there. Anyways, thanks for reading and back to the fic.   
  
LM 14: Living Shadows   
  
I make my way through the seemingly darkened and twisted paths. It shouldn't be dark. Its only the afternoon. Maybe the darkness is all in my head. No. Its not. The shadow i almost stepped on moved. Not just a flicker, as if in the wind, mind you. It made a loop to the side and around to purposely avoid my step. It had nothing to fear. I do not "step". My true powers surfaced the moment mother died. i sppose the shock just gave it that extra shove forward. Consequently, I simply use my abilities to glide about a little less than an inch above the ground. Just to see if it will react again, or if my mind has actually started to deteriorate. I move the shadow in question, again it moves. How curious this is. I bend over to investigate this matter. As I am about to touch it, I am interrupted by someone that I haven't mentioned before.  
  
"Pssst! Tso Lan-kun! There's nothing there!"  
  
Two sets of juvenile snickers are heard. I turn around to find a relatively tall, female Chi guardian standing over me. Her body is covered in ornate swirls of green and Hikari is clinging to her leg. Receiving a piggyback ride, is Hsi Wu. "I don't see what business this is of yours, Niroto," "Hsi Wu-chan, your brother is grouchy. whatever shall we do with him? I think he's just jealous that I have taken away his playmate. What do you say?" Hsi says nothing, he only grins mischieviously and make sa sort of hissing laugh.  
  
"Are you quite through, Niroto?" "Ayy! What's with you, Tso Lan-Kun?"  
"Nothing!"  
Why does she make me so angry? Niroto has had no difficulty in enraging me since her arrival a week ago. I used to think that there were no beings that I could despise more than Syra Seo, Shendu and Tchang Tzu, but, this Chi Guardian has proven me wrong.  
"Anyways, Tso Lan-Kun, why haven't you come out to see us? We miss you?" I was not going to answer that, but Hsi Wu is quick to provide one for her. He never could say no to a pretty face, especially one who's pockets are lined with sweets. "Oni-san gets headaches, Niroto-sama. He can't come out in the light much. Especially since-" That's ENOUGH!" I shout at him. I lash out momentarily with my power and Hsi Wu is torn from Noroto's shoulders. He shrieks and opens his wings in an attempt to catch himself. Ahgast at what I have just done, I release my grip on my younger brother. He floats to the ground. Hikari is quick to make sure her close friend is unharmed. I have no idea what came over me. I just... lashed out.  
Hate...Fire...Burning...moth...beating...cries of suffering...I know this...This has already happened...STOP IT! I DON"T WANT TO REMEMBER THIS!.....I felt such sorrow...at the world...almost...hate...darkness...blue and purple everywhere...NO! I Know What This Is...it is the birthplace of hate...the soul..a heart in darkness births the blues and purples that infect the souls of man and demon alike...but in the darkness...two eyes...burning shifting between blue and purple...she smiles at me...she's evil, I know it...around her lay the bodies of the fallen...before her, Auriel, the golden Chi Dragon bound by tentacles of her construction....This has already happened. Why am I seeing it now?  
"We can't have you interefering,"  
I hear a shriek of pain and rage, the sound of a soul in anguish, as if it were looking into the eyes of its beloved, only to see that the owner of those ever hyhpnotic orb plunged a knife into its back. The woman's voice can be heard, but its muffled now...a headache begins to form in my head like an irritant sliver. ...She's not talking to me...Who is this woman?...I see her, but...Where am I?...Is this a vision? But then...why is there no immense and terrible destruction?..Only candles burn...those shifting eyes turn and look into me..."Murderer" she says, smiling, revealing sharpened fangs..a moth beats against a lantern...She was talking to me...this dark woman...I'm standing...and...Mother falls into my arms...She's dead...There's nothing I can do...Murderer...what?  
  
"Tso Lan-Kun! What the hell is wrong with you?  
  
what am I doing?   
  
"What are you doing?"  
  
What is she going on about?  
  
"BAKA TSO LAN!"  
  
Niroto? Than I must be back in the land of the living.  
  
"...could have killed...should be more careful!"  
  
Her voice fades in and out.   
  
That woman of darkness looked at me.   
  
I'll never forget what she said to me.  
  
"Murderer."  
  
"Tso Lan Kun!!!"  
  
A fierce stinging sensation on my cheek returns me to the presence of Niroto and the others. In fact, the stinging sensation feel was caused by the impact of her hand. I can only stand there and stammer in disbelief and confusion. Niroto shouts something in her native tongue to Hikari. Hikari gingerly takes Hsi Wu's claw in her hand and leads him away. He resists momentarily, but its impossible to resist a pair of impossibly green eyes. The two of them make their way to Rumiko-hime's bungalow and disappear behind a sliding door.  
"Tso Lan-Kun?"  
Niroto...her voice sounded strained almost tearful. Why? I look at her and her green eyes are filling with Chi tinted tears. She suddenly bites her lip and slaps me fiercely across the face. Her hand leaves a harsh stinging sensation. Who knew my face was so sensitive? She really didn't slap me that hard. Those Life essence eyes of hers hold be transfixed despite their inherent fury. Why do I notice them now? It is still the same annoying Niroto who follows me around. The same noisy intruder who refuses to let me concentrate on my studies, the one who teases me incessantly and...now has had the gall to slap me, the son of a demon lord in the face twice in the same day. Wait, I must be cautious, Gods, Im sounding like that treacherous Syra.   
Syra has been spending noticably more time absent from us, I can't say I miss her but it is unsettling.  
I heard father talking with Teng the other day. She mentioned that syra's aura is becoming more prominent, an endless vortex of blues andd purples. Father told her she never trusted anyone and should not be so judgemental. Teng said: "Yet, I am still alive. Kung, if you were anyone else, I would slap you," I left, knowing she knew I was eavesdropping, but her suspicions and observations continue to plague my mind even now.  
Niroto is still staring at me as I drift back to reality, a shadow drifts behind her with no discernable cause. It zigs this way and that on a definite path to some predetermined destination. I push Niroto aside as I follow the shadow along the wall before it vanishes in the shadow of a tree. Her huff of indignation falls upon deaf ears, I have far more important things to attend to now than an irrate pest. But, Niroto has also caught sight of it as well. Her eyes burn with an angry fire. She unstraps a curved dagger from her thigh and hurls it into the tree's shadow. A hiss is heard as a small puff of purplish fog floats up from the dagger's point of contact. Niroto stalks forward angrily and removes her weapon. After cleaning it in the glass, she returns it to its place. She mutters a curse in her native tongue. I pick up the word "again", but I am unfamiliar with her dialect. She looks at me, serious for the first time.  
"Tso Lan-Kun, have you seen these before?"  
"Yes, what...what are they?"  
"They are Shadow Khan, Spirits of darkness, but they are incapable of acting alone. They need another more powerful mind to overwhelm their hive like mindset. There are two types, natural Shadow Khan, which are created in dark rooms which are left unattended for long periods of time, and there are those who are created from poisoned Chi guardians. Bit by bit, their personality fades until the toxin of evil destroys their very soul. These are a plague which pose a danger to the people here as well as the Chi well,"  
"Chi Well?"  
"You mean you don' know? You have to be kidding,"  
"What? Is it something I should be concerned with?"  
"Kami-Sama! You're serious! Geez..I mean.. don't you know where you live? What makes your temple so damn special?"  
"I had no idea it was something special. Why is it so fdifferent from other temple?"  
"I don't believe this. You have live dhere all this time and you never knew?"  
"Knew what?" "The Chi Well located in your temple is the lifesblood of this continent! Didn''t you ever wonder why even in years of drought, your father's kingdom flourished? Its because the lifespring is locate din the well inside the sanctum. That's why we've all been gathering here, to defend it1 With the arrival of these Shadow Khan, our security must be increased. Have you seen any more like that one?"  
Niroto motions toward the place where she impaled the shadow.  
"Several times, but before today I thought they were only tricks of the light,"  
I had no idea a Chi Guardian can turn pale. But sure enough, Niroto's olive face drained of its vibrant color and her mouth twitched at the corners. She took a few steps back before turning toward father's palace.  
"Lord Kung must be informed of this immediately!"  
She takes off, but stops after a few moments. She looks back at me with an exasperated look.  
"Are you coming or not, Tso Lan Kun?"   
"Coming,"  
Together we race up the steps to father's palace, or rather, Niroto races and I float swiftly beside her. I reach to open the enormous door at the top of the stairs, but before I can touch it, she pulls it open and races to the foot of father's throne. As she kneels before him, she begins to incoherently ramble about the incident which has just occurred, but she stops in mid sentence and looks up in horror at the sight before her.   
My father sists in his throne, at first glance all appears well, but upon further inspection, a trail of black and crimson can be seen from the floor befor eNiroto's hands to the foot of the throne up my father's robes and to a gaping hole in his chest. Niroto quivers with revulsion and jumps back.  
The clicking of claws on the shiny marble floor is heard and from behind the throne, blood covered sword in hand and finger ever twitching her whisker comes Syra Seo. Eyes burning, she snorts a flume of brimstone before speaking in a rather wicked singsong voice.  
"My my, it looks like we have visitors. Do say hello to them Marl darling. Oh, that's right you can't..."  
With a sudden arch of her wrist, she brings her sword up and around before bringing it down on the neck of my father, promptly beheading his corpse. Witht hat motion, she finishes her ghastly proclamation:  
"BECAUSE YOU'RE DEAD!"  
The disembodied head flies into Niroto's arms. She can only stand there shaking as a noticable amount of shadows congregate.  
"Niroto!" I call out, but it is too late.  
From the shadows in the floor arise masked, red eyed warriors. Phantoms of darkness and decay, The Shadow Khan have emerged. End chapter 14. Don't Worry, there's plenty more 


	15. Broken

Lotus Moon-Chapter 15

disclaimer: I don't own JCA.

Author's not: Dear God! I hadn't realized how long it had been since I updated! I've been so busy this last year, but I never forgot this fic. Nope. So, here is some Lotus Moon for all you patient readers. We're reaching a point in the fi cwhere updates should be coming A LOT sooner. Things accelerate and things spiral downwards. Hang on. Here's what you can expect in this chapter: Tso Lan has a power surge. Someone dies (. You will like it, that sounds so wrong), and Firefly 4000's question gets answered. Enjoy!

Chapter 15: Broken

Niroto screams aloud and drops the severed head of my father.

A sick feeling wells within my stomach.

Niroto quivers as my father's dark blood runs down her hands.

"There...There was nothing I could do, He's just...just...dead,"

She's talking to herself.

No one else cares what she has to say.

One of her Chi tattoos blazes to life on her arm. Its the one she once told me was some ludicrous thing called a "Beacon of Blame". The Chi guardians are over dramatic.

Niroto glares at Syra, who observes cooly as her shadow warrior close in around us.

"Why have you killed our lord? Was he not good to you?"

Why am I not saying these words?

Was it not my father who was just slain?

Why am I, so well read, unable to say or feel anything.

Anything, that is, except for spiraling darkness.

Everything is cold.

There is no Syra, no Niroto. Only myself.

And blazing red eyes in the dark, all with dark claws reaching for me.

My heart beats faster and faster.

It pounds in my head with incessant madness.

Faster.

Harder.

It will not stop!

My upper arms clasp over my ears to drown out the hideous thudding of my heart. My lower arms clutch my chest, feeling the muscle as it slams against my ribcages.

I fall to my knees, shaking.

A voice breaks through the darkness.

It is a desperate and sad voice, twinged with panic.

I know that voice.

Niroto? Where is she? I want her! I want her to hold me! To make it stop! To make everything stop!

"STOP!" I scream, raggedly and thundering.

Suddenly, the darkness is gone.

I am back in the nightmare of reality.

Syra is drenched in the blood of my father.

My sire's body lies bloody, broken, and slashed practically apart by sword blade and dragon claw.

She must die.

She must.

I suddenly realize that the cold never left me.

A voice seems to speak to me, in my head, in my thundering heart.

Just crush her.

These shadows as well.

Crush them.

Kill them.

You are cold.

Do it.

I give in.

I slowly raise my hands above my head.

Niroto leans by my side.

She asks me something, but her words have no meaning.

I feel my eyes illuminate with burning fury.

Syra gives a motion to the Shadow Khan.

The living shadows begin to move towards us.

Niroto clutches my shoulder.

She is touching me.

The Shadow Khan never even get to move an inch.

I release years of pressure in an instant.

Waves of peculiar puple force gush from my fingertips like a tsunami.

I see Syra's eyes bulge in disbelief for a moment.

It is enough for me to know that she's afraid.

This is good for us.

Her creations are crushed out of existence in an instant.

I know this.

I don't know how, but I feel them crush within my power.

MY POWER.

I didn't even know shadows could be crushed.

I hear Syra stutter for an instant before she to is swept into the crushing abyss of my unleashed power. I raise her off the ground.

It is as if the knowledge of my power, my element is innate, it only needed to be unlocked.

I smile coldly.

The dragon is afraid. I can feel her heart now beating against the blackness.

Faster and faster in a panic as the air around her tightens.

I'm breaking her bones.

One by one.

She can't even scream.

I forced her mouth closed.

Snap.

A leg.

Snap.

An arm.

Twist.

Her spine.

I drop her.

I don't want to kill her.

I don't need her black soul on my karma.

I know she won't live much longer anyway.

I saw it.

The future.

I realize now, that when I use my powers, i see the future.

I saw three things just now.

All very unrelated.

I saw Syra crawling, crippled along the ground, then she was dead.

Strangled. Her body lies discarded and broken. A raven eats her eyes.

I saw myself, alone on the Moon, my home. The soft blissful touch of gravity without sound. Without air. Silence. I am alone and happy here, until a wave of emotion strikes me.

But, I am unsure as to what the emotional feeling is.

I don't have the chance to see.

Hsi Wu comes into my vision now. He's older now. By Demon standards, he's still very young. But he's hiding behind a foreign building whose design I do not recognize. He's watching and waiting. A girl in an orange garment and blue pants comes racing around the corner. Hsi Wu assumes a human guise, A HUMAN GUISE-and goes after her. He looks happy, sad, and coniving at the same time.

Its over now.

Niroto is staring at me in disbelief.

I look around. The floor has been split open. Everything in the room except for Niroto and myself has been destroyed.

Syra drags her broken body away with her one good arm. Her legs are twisted, they will never work again.

Niroto moves to go after her.

"No," I say. My voice has become slightly metallic.

"No, she will meet her end shortly,"

Niroto nods.

"Tso Lan-kun, we must go tell the others. Even if she is defeated, the task at hand may still be completed,"

She is avoiding the subject of my power. I can't blame her. I do not want to think of it either. It seemed...too easy.

Too easy to destroy lives and maim beings.

If you could call them beings. Their former selves were lost long ago.

Niroto grasps my sleeve, tugging sharply, to get me to follow her.

We leave my father's throne room for the last time.

I reach behind me with my power and place my father's head beside his body and pull his cloak over his face so that carrion birds will not fly in though the open windows and devour his still warm corpse.

It is the only thing I can do for him now.

For the first time in years, my head does not hurt.

THE ONLY PART OF LOTS MOON NOT IN TSO LAN's POINT OF VIEW.

Syra drug her broken body slowly over the ground. Shards of bone within her dug into various tissues, ripping muscle, fat, and nerves.

She growled to herself about revenge. She wold avenge herself and kill them all! She could and would still rule the darkness!

She saw a familiar golden talon step out from another room.

Shendu!

Her bloody, shattered face smiles.

"My boy! My dear sweet son! Be a good boy and help you dear mother up, won't you?" she asked hopefully.

This tactic had never failed before.

It didn't this time, either.

Her good son leaned over and pulled her up gently. But he didn't stop.

In fact, he placed a talon around her neck and lifted her up.

He squeezed.

She struggled, but one claw is no match for a young male dragon.

Her neck snapped.

She fell limp.

Her "good son" threw her carcass against the wall and watched it slide downward to the floor where it lay in a heap, its eyes staring blankly out at the world, unseeing.

Dead.

Shendu smiled and slowly walked away, out into the courtyard behind the main house, leaving the door open behind him.

Moments later, a large raven flew in through the window and devoured the juicy eyes of a very dead dragoness.

End Chapter 15


	16. At Least We're not dealing with Oni

Lotus Moon Chapter 16

Note: I have been busy with a ton of things in my real life, like finishing my undergraduate degree (almost!), applying to graduate schools, visiting graduate schools, looking for an apartment for graduate school, working on a Senior research project….that all my stuff got pushed back to the very last burner. I'm sorry for the lapse in updates and fic reading. But, such is life. I know this chapter is short, but I thought I just had to get some more out there.

Chapter 16

There is no end to the treachery wrought from within.

Niroto and I ran as fast as we could through the winding gardens of the palace, heading towards Teng's Shrine as fast as our feet could carry us. All around us were the cries of the dead, dying and fighting. How had this all happened so quickly? A few short hours ago, this palace was a tranquil paradise sheltered from the recent upheavals of the Western lands by insurmountable odds of luck as well as the benefit of vast distance.. But these weren't the human upheavals that plagued the western world. These were warriors who wore the skin of past comrades, our very allies who had helped us.

But they're gone. They're mindless things now. They strike swift killing blows, but simply move on to another target. The human servants that remain are scrambling away. The intelligent ones do so quietly and use back paths. The foolish ones scream and run into more attackers.

Niroto stops and looks around. She is panicking, but you'd never know it from the way she looks. But I can tell. Her personal nuances of fear and despair are creeping in. The twitch of her lip, the slight dilation of her pupil both indicate not only that something is even more horribly wrong than can be witnessed, but she is aware of something else, a danger on another level.

"Tso Lan-kun, our attackers may have been let in by Syra, but their goal isn't what we're seeing,"

I knew that. This is an elaborate and completely effective distraction. I breathe deeply.

"We have to get to the temple,"

I make the order. Not a statement.

Two shadows spring up from the ground in front of us. Four blazing red eyes glare at us from beneath their cowls. One of Niroto's tattoos glows, producing a spear. With a quick wave of the Chi weapon, both creatures dissolve into a faint, purple mist.

"Dark chi? Well, at least we're not dealing with Oni," Niroto sounds relieved.

How one can feel relieved at a time like this is beyond me. I hope never to encounter an Oni if this is what something less than they could create. All I know about Oni is what I have read in books that I am positive were out of date. None of them mentioned anything remotely related to this. Before I can ask any questions, Niroto continues her trek towards the temple at the rear of the palace.

I see another flash of green in the distance. Its lower to the ground and more haphazard, as if the Chi weapon is being activated by a child.

It is. Hikari is doing her best to fend off a shadow, but isn't doing much good. She's visibly tired. Behind her, a smaller, darker shape lashes out at enemies claws can't harm. Gods. It is His Wu. The two of them are fending the two off by themselves.

Before I can take a step towards them, Rumiko-hime appears suddenly and slashes the two into nothingness. She stands elegantly with a foreign sword in her hands. Apparently, she studied far more than ikebana in her homeland.

"Rumiko-hime! " Niroto calls.

Rumiko-hime turns, then, guiding the children to her and pushing them in our direction. I am relieved to see the three of them are alright. If We are the only survivors, I would be happy. If Teng Marzipan is still alive and I am sure she is, as I find it impossible to imagine her having a normal death, then I only truly mourn the loss of my father. I may sound cold, but in all sense of reality, everyone I love except Bai is here with me right now.

I suddenly feel better about our upcoming temple siege.

End Chapter 16

Hopefully, I'll be able to get these chapters out quicker this term. XD


	17. Severance

AN: OMG. Did you think I would forget this fic? NEVER! Two years between updates? SUCH IS LIFE. Muses are fickle beings. But lo and behold, Chapter 17. Guess what..Aura, the Dark Chi Guardian, finally appears. I've had her in my brain since I first started this fic. Here she is at last. Yes, she was always going to do that...you'll know when you read it.

Chapter 17: Severance

We make out way together, all of us.

Though, to be honest, "all of us" isn't that many.

We don't really have much of a chance, but we are together.

An orange and blue blur sweeps past me, ruffling my robes and leaving a cold wind in its wake.

Rumiko-hime shoves the two children out of the way and holds her sword up just in time. An orange talon is pressing down on her blade. Her arms shake from the effort, holding that claw away from her. Now that it is holding still, I can see what it is. A humanoid female. Her eyes are black and beady like a reptile. Her orange skin is covered with a series of brilliant blue, jagged tattoos.

She is a Dark One.

A Dark One Rumiko-hime knows.

"You!" she snarls.

The dark one smiles, cruel, merciless.

"Miss me, princess? You've been difficult to find,"

Rumiko-hime screams and lashes out at the being. It zips back.

"Been busy, princess? That little half-breed yours? He'll be easy to take care of. I'll slice those little wings off and eat them,"

Her voice is ice and darkness.

I lash out with my own power.

I feel her insides. There's nothing much there. Darkness and cold. That's all she is. She's a ball of Dark Chi come to life. A perverse and unnatural thing.

I squeeze her and neon blue Dark Chi oozes out her eyes and ears.

She falls to her knees, there is nothing for her to lean on. There is nothing inside her.

She chokes as it oozes out of her mouth.

Rumiko-hime glares with rage maddened eyes at her wounded adversary. With a shrill scream of rage and pain, she brings the blade down into her enemy, slicing a hole in her shoulder. Condensed blue evil sprays out of her.

I see fear in the thing's eyes.

It does not want to die. This abomination against nature is aware of its mortality. It doesn't like it. It is doomed no matter what happens. There is no flesh to hold her together.

With her last ounce of energy, the creature launches herself at the princess and manages to grab the sword, a mad desire to continue to exist overcoming her obviously grievous wounds.

"I will NOT DIE!" her words are garbled in the blue that floods her mouth.

All of a sudden, she's made of blue fire. She makes one last ditch effort to survive. She slashes at Rumiko-hime with her own sword with a demonic power and severs her left hand.

There's a spray of red now.

And a symphony of voices.

The dark being seizes the severed hand and holds it to her chest.

She then turns the blade on herself, severing her own hand.

It isn't much of a job, it slices through her false skin like a knife through shortening. She hastily shoves the human limb in its place. An acrid smell fills the air and in another flash of orange and blue, she zaps by in another cold wind.

Hsi Wu is sobbing infantile tears I didn't know he was capable of.

Teng pulls off her jacket, revealing her undershirt and shreds it into long strips. She manages to tie off the wound, after shoving the hysterical half-breed out of the way.

Rumiko-hime is paler than usual, her robes stained with her own blood.

Niroto rushes forward and sweeps the sobbing demon child into her arms. She returns to my side.

"She would have died without it. The Dark One. Whether you crushed her or not. They can't survive without flesh. I've seen them dissolve. They rarely last more than a few years. But...she took her hand..I...I don't know what she'll be able to do now,"

I swallow.

Things just got a lot more complicated.


End file.
